Some of the best young sailing talent in the country will gather at the Royal Southern Yacht Club to contest the British Student Yachting Championships from 2-5 April.

Thirty one teams representing universities from all over Great Britain will battle it out over three days with eight races on tight Solent courses with one long inshore race.

Reigning World Sonar champion and Paralympic Gold medallist, Hannah Stodel will be competing for Loughborough University alongside members of the British Sonar squad, she is a big fan of the event as she explains: “It’s nice to get a break and do some fun sailing for a change and the Royal Southern is a good venue and incredibly accommodating. The racing was very close last year. I am hoping that our team has improved so we will be making a charge for the top five. Also each team must have two girls in the crew which is a great idea, although some Universities struggle, it does encouraging girlies to take part.”

Nick Cherry is skipper of one of the Southampton University teams, he is only 21 but he has already tasted success in a huge variety of boats; last year alone he won the National Match Racing Championships, 1720 Nationals and the Swan World Championships in Sardinia, Nick Cherry explains why he is racing:

“Firstly, it’s good for the University to do well and get more BUSA points, secondly it’s a nice one design fleet where it’s just up to how well you sail not how good your boat is and thirdly it’s a fun event to do with your mates.”

The winning crew of the BUSA National Championships will not only be crowned British University Champions but also win the right to compete at the Student Worlds in La Rochelle later this year.