Philip Sparks from Christchurch has won the Renaissance Reinsurance Optimist Junior Gold Cup in Bermuda with the low score of 14 points. Sparks overcame 34 competitors in the event for junior sailors from 10 nations around the world and Bermuda.

The Junior Gold Cup also was the final regatta of three to select Bermuda’s team for the Optimist World Championship. The five sailors are Josh Greenslade, Jordan Saints, Haley Powell, Jason Saints and James Anfossi. They’ll represent Bermuda at the Worlds in Montevideo, Uruguay, Dec. 29-Jan. 7, 2007.

A total of 10 races were run over three days on Great Sound. The first day, 12 October, was light and shifty. Friday 13 October, was cancelled along with the King Edward VII Gold Cup due the threat of severe weather. A wide range of conditions tested the junior sailors yesterday and today.

Sparks won the event by 13 points over Greenslade. Third went to Marcus Hansen of New Zealand, who finished with 31 points.

“Philip was faster than most of the kids,” said Saints. “He clearly dominated in the conditions that prevailed throughout the week.”

The foreign competitors that competed in the Junior Gold Cup were selected with the help of the International Optimist Dinghy Association and national associations.