Ottawa sailors hold their own as the Youth National Sailing Championships kick off

2 Aug, 2010  Notice

August 1, 2010, OTTAWA – Four Ottawa sailing teams held their own today in the first day of racing in the Under-19 category of the 2010 Youth National Sailing Championships, held at the Nepean Sailing Club in west-end Ottawa.  In the lead was the team of Joel Riordan and Matthew Soosalu of Britannia Yacht Club, who finished first overall in a field of 17 boats in the 29er fleet.  They were followed by Sean Kayser and Ryan O’Donnell in 7th place, and Olivia Rubens and Zachary Rubens, who finished 10th.  The team of Mark McGugan and Hayward Pierce held to a respectable 8th place overall in the Club 420 (Male) fleet.

Among the single-handed boats, Sarah Douglas of the Royal Canadian Yacht Club in Toronto is the competitor to watch, as she ably handled her Laser Radial to a first-place finish overall in the Laser Radial (Female) race.  Miss Douglas is honing her skills as she prepares to represent Canada at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore later in August.  On the men’s side, the contender to beat is Alexander Heinzemann of the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, who also finished first in the Laser (Male) fleet.  Mr. Heinzemann is just back from the 2010 Volvo ISAF Youth World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey, where he placed in the top ten.

Racing was certainly challenging, with light and shifty winds that forced race officials to change the direction of the two racecourses several times during the day.  Of the five races planned, only two per course were completed. Race officials do expect winds to pick up over the coming days, making for more demanding matches.  Nonetheless, today’s conditions tested racers’ patience and adaptability, challenges made more difficult in unfamiliar waters and with low water levels.

Racing in the Under-19 Championships continues until Wednesday, August 4th.

About the Youth National Sailing Championships

Part of the Canadian Yachting Association’s Long-Term Athlete Development program, the Youth National Sailing Championships, hosted this year by the Nepean Sailing Club, features two distinct regattas: one for male and female athletes aged 19 years and under (“U19″), and one for athletes aged 17 years and under (“U17″), competing in various classes: 29ers, Laser, Laser Radial, and Club 420.  The successful champions will be racing at the ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships in Zadar, Croatia in 2011, and some will ultimately go on to compete to be on Canada’s team for the 2012 Olympics.

The U19 regatta has 122 competitors registered.

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