New chapter written in Burton-Wearn rivalry

by David Sygall 2 Dec 2017 06:43 GMT 29 November - 3 December 2017

L-R: Matt Wearn, Tom Burton and Jeremy O'Connell - Sail Melbourne International 2017 - Day 4 © David Sygall

Recent podium finishes have only whetted Matt Wearn's appetite for success. Instead of playing second fiddle to Olympic Laser champion Tom Burton, the 22-year-old West Australian believes the time is nearing for him to prove he has the ability to close out regattas.

In sailing there will always be some element of fate dictated by the weather, as there was on Day 4 at Sail Melbourne when powerful winds and rough seas spelt a premature end to Olympic class competition, leaving Wearn just one point behind gold medallist Burton. It was a similar story at the Laser World Championship in Croatia in September when Wearn had to settle for bronze and Burton silver after racing was abandoned on the final day, leaving Cypriot Pavlos Kontides the victor.

"The World Championship was a result of being consistent, but I went there wanting to win," Wearn said.

"Getting a bronze medal was great but, at the end of the day, I've got to start winning at regattas. I was pretty happy on the day but still disappointed I was one point off second and pretty close to first. It was because of a couple of little mistakes I made. So, I was happy but not happy."

Competition within the Australian Laser squad is intense, despite the strong sense of kinship. Wearn's teammates, including Burton, Sail Melbourne bronze medallist Jeremy O'Connell and U21 national champion Finn Alexander would respect his desire to beat them because it makes them all perform better. It's a delicate balance, but one that has been fostered over several years.

"It's about where the squad's come from - Slingers (Tom Slingsby), Ash Brunning, Jared West - it's just filtered down," Wearn said.

"The people in this squad have always had respect for each other, we've always been good mates. There are times you're not going to get along, have a bit of biffo out on the water or whatever, but everyone respects each other enough that when you come in you're good mates.

"It's a matter of pushing each other on the water but still having that camaraderie off the water. It's really important and Blackers (coach Michael Blackburn) instills that in all of us and it's just part of the team's values. I hope we can show the other squads that it's a really important thing and they can build that up too."

With sailing abandoned on the final day of Olympic class competition, results stayed as they were the previous day, leaving Jake Lilley (Finn), Mat Belcher and Will Ryan (470), David Gilmour and Joel Turner (49er), Amelia Stabback and Ella Clark (49erFX) and Jason Waterhouse and Lisa Darmanin (Nacra 17) the gold medallists.

Results for Australian Sailing Team, Australian Sailing Squad and Class Training Squad members:

Men's One Person Dinghy (Heavyweight) - Finn

Jake Lilley (QLD/QAS) – AST: 1,(2),1,1,2,1 – 1st
Oliver Tweddell (VIC/VIS) – AST: 3,(5),5,2,1,4 – 3rd
Lewis Brake (QLD/QAS) – ASS: (12),8,7,4,6,7 – 6th
Jock Calvert (TAS/TIS) – ASS: (11),10,6,5,7,6 – 7th

Men's One Person Dinghy – Laser

Tom Burton (NSW/NSWIS) – AST: 3,2,1,1,(5),2,1 – 1st
Matt Wearn (WA/WAIS) – AST: 2,1,3,3,1,1,(4) – 2nd
Jeremy O'Connell (VIC/VIS) – ASS: 1,3,2,2,3,(7),6 – 3rd
Luke Elliott (WA/WAIS) – ASS: 5,4,4,(7),2,3,2 – 4th
Mitch Kennedy (QLD/QAS) – ASS: 9,6,(16),11,4,4,3 – 6th
Finn Alexander (NSW/NSWIS) – ASS: 7,8,(16),9,6,6,7 – 7th

Two Person Dinghy – 470M/W

Mathew Belcher and Will Ryan (QLD/QAS) – AST: 2,1,(4),1,1,1 – 1st
Chris Charlwood and Josh Dawson (WAIS/NSWIS) – ASS: 4,4,2,2,(5),5 – 4th
Carrie Smith and Jaime Ryan (WAIS/NSWIS) – ASS: 3,6,3,(8),4,4 – 5th
Nia Jerwood and Monique de Vries (WA/WAIS) – ASS: 6,5,6,5,(13),6– 6th
Dana Tavener and Katherine Shannon (NSW/NSWIS) – ASS: 9,8,7,9,8,(10) – 8th
Sophie McIntosh and Orla Mulholland-Patterson (NSWIS/WAIS) – ASS: 8,(10),9,7,10,8 – 9th
Shelley White and Emma Baillie (QLD/QAS) – ASS: (11),11,10,6,9,9 – 11th

Men's Skiff - 49er