With close racing throughout, the final round of the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship will decide who walks away with gold?. A competitive day of racing on day five of the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship, Lunenburg, Canada, is setting up a tight final round with the gold medals being decided on the final day in many of the classes. Racing got off to an early start with the Mistrals heading out under north-easterly winds, while the other fleets commenced racing on schedule. The winds ran at six to eight knots and swung southerly delaying races through the afternoon. Three races were completed in the Laser and Byte classes, while the Mistrals and 29ers completed two. Pippa Wilson and Jenny Marks of Great Britain still maintain their first place position in the girls 29er class, scoring a bullet in the second race of the day, although racing is tight with just a one-point separating them from Australia’s Elise Rechichi and Rashele Martin. New Zealand’s Rachel O’Brien and Kelly Riechelmann are in third. With points so close the pressure will be on going into the final day for Wilson and Marks to bring home the gold medal. In the boys 29er class, Australia’s Nathan Outteridge and Ayden Menzies are holding on to the lead after Thursday’s racing. In second place, two points behind are the New Zealand team of Geoff Woolley and Mark Overington. France’s Guillavme Vigna and Thibaut Gatti are third. Team GBR sailors Jonny Marshall and Tom Smedley won the second race of the day, but after a slightly disappointing first race result they slip down into eighth position overall.

In the boys Laser class, Andrew Campbell of the United States keeps his first place in the overall standings, with Croatia’s Ivan Kljakovic Gaspic in second, and Tobias Schadewaldt of Germany is in third. British sailor Andy Brooks had one of his best days of the regatta, scoring a seventh and a fifth place. No overall standing is available. Canada’s Jennifer Spalding is in first in the overall standings in the girls Byte class, Karin Soderstrom of Sweden is in second, while Paige Railey of the United States is in third. Britain’s Colette Blair struggled a little in the fluky conditions that the light sea breeze offered; full results are not available at present. In the boys Mistral class standings, New Zealand’s Thomas Ashley is first, Byron Kokkalanis of Greece is second, and Switzerland’s Jan Schenck is third. Team GBR sailor Dan Binney maintains his fourth place position after scoring a fifth and a tenth place. In the girls Mistral class, Poland’s Zofia Klepacka is first, Blanca Manchon of Spain and Wai Man Chan of Hong Kong are in second and third spots respectively. Catherine Potter scored a seventh and a tenth place finish, and due to her injury is struggling to pump in the light breeze. She still however maintains a top ten position.

Team Manager Mark Barron commented, “the conditions experienced today have been tricky for the team, but many of the sailors kept their heads about them. The points are very close in many of the classes, and in particular the 29er girls class, where there is one point separating Jenny and Pippa and the Australian girls. The pressure will be on for the final day, and the team will just have to go out and do their best.”

New Zealand remains in the lead for the Volvo Trophy, which is based on team results across all racing classes, Great Britain has dropped to fifth but with only two points separating them from Australia, the pressure is on for the last day of racing. Volvo Trophy Standings (Top 5) – 30 nations are represented.

1, New Zealand 329 pts

2, United States of America 275 pts

3, France 273 pts

4, Australia 245 pts

5, Great Britain 243 pts

Sacha Oswald