Oamps Youth Championship Winners
Yachting Queensland youth sailing team completed another remarkable performance during the 2010 OAMPS Insurance Brokers Australian championship final over the Largs Bay Sailing Club course last weekend.
They further confirmed that the Queensland youth development and training programs headed by resident Yachting Australia high performance coach Adrian Finglas were heading on a gaining tack with six talented teenagers selected to contest the 2010 Volvo ISAF World youth championship next July in Turkey.
The benefits from endless hours of training and racing on Brisbane’s Waterloo Bay and backed with the support from the Queensland Academy of Sport paved the way for the Queensland team to again dominate demonstrating their individual skill and maturity to win their Gold Medals against stern opposition.
There was an element of confidence however the young team also absorbed the pressure to uphold the success after Queensland completed a similar result at the 2009 championships in West Australia where they staged a ‘Gold Rush’ winning five individual national titles with four sailors selected to contest the Volvo Youth World championship in Brazil.
Success has continued to flow along the fast lane with Ben Franklin, Joanna Sterling, Angus Galloway, Angus Gough, Elloise Brake and Ashley Warlow selected to race under the proud Australian flag at the World championship in July.
“It was another proud moment to see all the familiar smiling faces on the victory dais”. Coach Adrian Finglas said.
Techno sail boarder Joanna Sterling won selection to contest her second World series on a count back from her New South Wales rival Rebecca Wyatt while Laser Radial skipper Ben Franklin backed his open Australian championship victory with an 8 point win over West Australian Matthew Wearn.
Queensland crews dominated the 420 class with Angus Galloway and Alex Gough overcoming a black flag disqualification to claim the male title with a 1-4-5-6-3-1-11 score while the happy combination of Elloise Brake and Ashley Warlow finished all of the 9 open class races in the top 20 to win their deserved gold medal by 14 points from West Australian’s Carrie Smith and Ella Clark.
Madison Kennedy (15) raced with confidence on an unfamiliar course to recover from a black flag disqualification to steer her 4.7 rig Laser King Fox 111 to a PB (personal best) result winning the female class Gold Medal from Phillipa Wood and Isabella Say while brother Mitchell (17) continued to impress with a fourth in the highly competitive Laser Radial fleet.
By Ian Grant.