At a high scoring regatta in Oman, Howth's Eve McMahon has regained her top five placing overall going into the final day of competition at the Youth World Sailing competition on Friday.

On Wednesday, at the halfway point of the championships, the Howth ace dropped ten places from sixth to sixteenth in the ILCA 6 fleet but fought hard on the penultimate day to move back into fifth overall.

A 3.0 and 6.0 scored yesterday sees the Dubliner now just 11 points off the podium with the final races being sailed today.

In the Men’s ILCA 6 (Laser Radial), Royal Cork’s Jonathan O’Shaughnessy is in 32nd place overall in a fleet of 50 after eight races sailed.

Royal Cork 29er team Ben O’Shaughnessy and James Dwyer are currently in 13th place after 12 of their 13 races.

Five golds decided in Oman

The gold medals have been decided in five of the 11 events at the 2021 Youth Sailing World Championships presented by Hempel. The 420 girls along with both windsurfing and kitefoiling divisions have been wrapped up before Friday’s final races.

With the warm wind touching just over 10 knots, this was the best breeze of the regatta so far. The ever reliable Oman sun shone brightly on the sailors, and on Thursday’s gold medal winners in particular. 

Female Windsurfer Bic Techno 293+

Manon Pianazza (FRA) has won windsurfing gold with an unbroken 11 race wins. "I’m super happy, very pleased with my performance this week," said the French sailor who is looking to campaign the iQFOiL windsurfer for the Olympic Games in Paris 2024. Kristyna Chalupnikova (CZE) needs to sail a solid day on Friday to make sure she retains silver ahead of Zoe Fernandez de Bobadilla Ramos (ESP) and Lucy Kenyon (GBR). 

Male Windsurfer Bic Techno 293+

Federico Alan Pilloni (ITA) was mobbed by his Italian team mates as he landed at Mussanah Beach after sealing windsurfer victory with a day to spare. His fans raised him above their heads on his Bic Techno 293+ board and carried him across the sand chanting Italian football anthems. "What a welcome! I am so lucky to be part of this team," smiled Pilloni. "It’s been a great week and a lot of fun to be here."

Boris Shaw (GBR) scored a string of seconds to wrap the silver medal for Great Britain and Ozan Turker (TUR) will be hard to beat for the bronze. 

Male Kiteboarding FormulaKite

The usually calm and collected Max Maeder (SGP) went crazy as he crossed the finish line this afternoon. The Singaporean had bounced back from a difficult start to the competition, dominating the latter stages and winning the gold medal with a day to spare. "That wasn’t easy. The first day was a blunder I never want to repeat. I overestimated myself, I guess, and maybe I was complacent. To come back was hard, I had to give it everything but now it feels great. Today completely neutralises that first day. It feels phenomenal. This is a feeling that will never get old." In the 50 year history of the Youth Worlds, this is kitefoiling’s first time in the event, and it’s by far the fastest and most furious form of sailing ever seen at youth level. "You need high reaction speed, and a certain level of physical courage because you have no protection from a hull," said the 15 year old. "It's just you and the board. When you get, like, two metres close to someone, you're like body to body with them with the razor sharp foil right beneath you, doing 32 knots through the water." Riccardo Pianosi (ITA) congratulated Maeder but promised he would make his rival work harder for victory next time. The Italian picked up a U Flag disqualification for starting too soon in one race today, meaning Pianosi can’t afford any slip-ups on the final day as he bids to defend silver from Mikhail Novikov (RUS) in third place. 

Female Kiteboarding FormulaKite

Gal Zukerman (ISR) has won gold with a sensational 16 straight race wins. Following a 10th place in a 420 three years ago at the Youth Worlds, the Israeli switched to kiteboarding two years ago and kitefoiling just over a year ago. "I have loved every moment of this week," she smiled. "Kitefoiling is so much fun. I can’t remember when I started sailing, I’m too young to remember that moment. But I have always been sailing boats and now I am loving the kitefoiling." Julia Damasiewicz (POL) sits in silver but with two retirements currently being discarded from her scores, the Polish sailor can’t afford any slip-ups in case she gets passed by Héloïse Pégourié (FRA) who lurks in third. 

Female Two Person Dinghy 420

Neus Ballester Bover and Andrea Perello Mora (ESP) have won the gold medal with a race to spare. Vanessa Lahrkamp and Katherine McNamara (USA) won the last race of the session and now move into silver position ahead of Manon Pennaneac'h and Victoire Lerat (FRA). "It’s great to win in this strong fleet," said Perello. "The Americans are the World Champions in the class and there are so many strong teams, the French, the Italians." Ballester revealed the secret to their success: "We felt relaxed all week. We enjoyed ourselves and really liked the conditions in Oman. Super tricky and hard to read the wind, but I was head out of the boat all the time, looking around for the best wind." Neus is the daughter of José Luis Ballester who won a medal for Spain in the Tornado catamaran in Atlanta 1996. She couldn’t remember what colour though. "Gold," her crew reminded her, rolling her eyes. "Your father won gold!" Perello shouted, exasperated but laughing. Now Perello and the next generation of the Ballester family have won their own gold.

Male/Mixed Two Person Dinghy 420

Kaito Ikeda and Shun Shigematsu (JPN) sailed a good day to rise to fourth place overall in the Mixed 420 class. However, the medals look most likely to go to the current top three of Spain, Israel and Germany. With such a narrow points gap, it could go either way but it’s still Ian Clive Walker March with Finn Dicke (ESP) who are looking to match the gold medal winning performance of their female 420 team mates. Roi Levy and Ariel Gal (ISR) are just three points off the lead, and Florian Krauss and Jannis Summchen (GER) are two points off silver.

Female Skiff 29er

Emily Mueller and Florence Brellisford (GBR) snatched back the yellow jersey from Charlie Leigh and Sophie Fisher (USA), a race win giving the British a 5 point advantage going into the final day. Alja Petric and Katja Filipic (SLO) hold third overall ahead of Denmark. 

Male Skiff 29er

Hugo Revil & Karl Devaux (FRA) looked likely to wrap up the boys’ 29er fleet today but an 11th in the last of three races will mean they will have to fight for their gold on Friday. The French are within striking range of their closest rivals in Friday’s concluding race. Ian and Noah Nyenhuis (USA) had the best day and have risen up to silver medal position, displacing to third another sibling team from Spain, Mateo and Simon Codoñer Alemany (ESP). 

Female One Person Dinghy ILCA 6

After two individual race wins by Emerging Nations sailors on Wednesday, another EN competitor from Peru, Florencia Chiarella (PER) has turned on the afterburner on her Ziegelmeyer ILCA 6 dinghy. Scores of 4 and 3 have rocketed the Peruvian up to first overall, with a 15 point buffer on Anja von Allmen (SUI). However Chiarella can’t afford any major errors on the final day because she’s currently discarding a UFD disqualification worth a hefty 47 points. Zulal Alev Erkan (TUR) is in bronze medal position but still within a shot of gold if Peru and Switzerland slip up on banana skins. 

Male One Person Dinghy ILCA 6

José Gomes Saraiva Mendes (POR) extended his advantage over Sebastian Kempe (BER) after the Bermudian became one of many to fall foul of the dreaded black flag at the start. Kempe bounced back from black flag disappointment with a bullet in the next race and maintains silver position with a four point lead over Przemyslaw Machowski (POL). Two points off the podium and with a better discard than Bermuda and Poland is Luka Zabukovec (SLO).

Mixed Two Person Multihull Nacra 15

Kay Brunsvold and Cooper Delbridge (USA) have taken the yellow jersey off the French team, Thomas Proust and Eloïse Clabon (FRA). With a single point’s advantage to the Americans, watch out for a match race between USA and France. That said, the Nacra 15 fleet still has two races to run on Friday. Waiting in the wings are the Netherlands, Switzerland and Belgium who are still able to pounce on gold.

The final day of competition for the 335 sailors from 59 nations takes place on Friday 17 December, starting at 1200 hours local time.

Full results here

Howth Yacht Club's Eve McMahon continues to be the top Irish performer after another big day on the water at the 2021 Youth Sailing World Championships om Oman.

With 11 events due to be decided by the end of this Friday, 17 December, the 433 sailors from 59 nations already find themselves close to the halfway stage of the competition.

McMahon, who won the youth radial world title in Italy in August, is lying sixth after four races sailed so far in the girl's radial (ILCA6) division from 46 starters.

Her Irish team-mate Jonathan O'Shaughnessy is not fairing as well in the 50-boat boys ILCA 6 division and lies 34th overall.

In the boy's 29er skiff, Ben O'Shaughnessy and James Dwyer have dropped to 13th overall after six races sailed in their 24-boat fleet.

Female Skiff 29er

Emily Mueller (GBR) was having that very conversation with her 29er crew Florence Brellisford. "By the time we’re dropping the kite at the leeward gate in our next race, we’ll be half way through our regatta," said Mueller. "It feels like we’ve only just started!" It was a very good day for the British 29er team, scoring 1,3,1 in 6 to 10 knot conditions that Mueller described as ‘snakes and ladders’. "We finally learned how to start," smiled Brellisford, trying to pinpoint what made the difference on day two. "A good start makes life a lot easier, rather than having to fight your way through from the back. But it never felt easy. It was super shifty out there, really hard to read the wind."

The British girls are enjoying the competition and using one of the many supplied equipment boats that they didn’t have to bring themselves. "The boats are really good," said Mueller. "They feel fast, everything is new. But you’re not allowed to change anything, all the rope and control lengths are set, you can only add bungee. It’s the same for everybody so it’s very fair racing."

Four points behind the British crew are Charlie Leigh and Sophie Fisher (USA), who scored two fourth places but then fell foul of the Black Flag Disqualification for starting too soon in the last race of the session.

Meanwhile, life at the Barceló Mussanah Resort is good, with the sailors enjoying the swimming pool and the balmy weather either in the morning or during the afternoon. When you get your break depends on when your racing is scheduled for the day.

Male Skiff 29er

As soon as the girls had completed three races they sailed their 29ers to the beach near the pool, at which point their male team mates took over the boats for their afternoon session. Revil & Devaux (FRA) haven’t won a race but then they haven’t finished outside of the top five either. No other team has kept all their scores inside the top 10, so the French are on a breakaway in the 29er fleet. First day leaders, the Codoñer Alemany brothers (ESP) are in second, although the race wins for the day went to Italy, Finland and Argentina.

Mixed Two Person Multihull Nacra 15

Kay Brunsvold and Cooper Delbridge (USA) had the best day in the Nacra 15 multihull. Delbridge attributed this to the decision to have more fun. "We were doing a lot of contemplation last night about our rig and the way we're positioning ourselves through the waves. And we decided we’re just going to enjoy the racing today and see how things go. Worked out pretty well!" Where most of the skippers in the Nacra fleet are boys, Brunsvold is one of the few girls steering. Asked why boys tend to make up the majority of helms in the fleet, Brunsvold joked: "Males can be a little bit more stubborn and like to choose where the boat goes. But that's the way I am too." Delbridge laughed and agreed that his helm is probably the most stubborn of the two of them. "But we don’t really have disagreements either. When things go wrong we tend to laugh about it!"

Although the Americans have closed the gap to the leaders it’s still Thomas Proust and Eloïse Clabon (FRA) who hold the overall lead just one point ahead of Olivier Jaquet and Femme Rixt Rijk (NED).

Female One Person Dinghy ILCA 6

Biggest mover of the day in the girls’ ILCA 6 singlehander was Sara Savelli (ITA). After a disastrous opening day when the Italian was penalised for a Rule 42 kinetics infringement, and scores of 39 and 14, the resilient sailor bounced back with a first and a second place today, lifting Italy to within a point of the lead. Ahead of Savelli, however, are three sailors tied on 16 points at the top of the leaderboard - Anja von Allmen (SUI), Florencia Chiarella (PER) and Marie Jacobsen Lepperöd (NOR). 

Male One Person Dinghy ILCA 6

Ukraine’s Oskar Madonich (UKR) continues to lead the boys’ ILCA 6 fleet with Przemyslaw Machowski (POL) rising to second place ahead of José Gomes Saraiva Mendes (POR) in third. 

Female Two Person Dinghy 420

Neus Ballester Bover and Andrea Perello Mora (ESP) have seen their lead reduced to just a point ahead of Manon Pennaneac'h and Victoire Lerat (FRA). Vanessa Lahrkamp and Katherine McNamara (USA) are only a point behind the French in third.

Male/Mixed Two Person Dinghy 420

Ian Clive Walker March sailing with Finn Dicke (ESP) continue to lead for Spain, but closely chased by Roi Levy and Ariel Gal (ISR) and Florian Krauss and Jannis Summchen (GER).

Female Windsurfer Bic Techno 293+

Manon Pianazza (FRA) is in a class of her own, winning all six races. Behind her a close battle for the next places, just three points between CZE, ITA, ESP and GBR. 

Male Windsurfer Bic Techno 293+

Almost as impressive as Pianazza in the girls’ fleet, Federico Alan Pilloni (ITA) has scored all firsts and is discarding a second. Boris Shaw (GBR) is the only sailor to beat Pilloni in a race and holds second overall.

Male Kiteboarding FormulaKite

Mikhail Novikov (RUS) won the first race of the day, then the next two to Max Maeder (SGP). Leader after day one, Riccardo Pianosi (ITA) fought back with a win in the last race of the day, putting the Italian in a tie with Singapore but retaining the leader’s yellow jersey. 

Female Kiteboarding FormulaKite

Gal Zukerman (ISR) continued her perfect scoreline with unbroken victories. Julia Damasiewicz (POL) is second and Héloïse Pégourié (FRA) third. 

Competition continues on Wednesday, December, starting at 1200 hours local time.

Howth Yacht Club's Eve McMahon is in the top five of the Youth Sailing World Championships after day one delivered stunning weather for the start of the championships in Mussanah, Oman.

The Irish Radial youth world champion took an 11 and 4 in her opening races in the 46 boat ILCA 6 fleet to be just three points off the overall lead. 

Likewise, there's been another strong start for Ireland in the boy's 29er skiff class, where Royal Cork duo James Dwyer and Ben O'Shaugnessy are in sixth place on 11 points after three races sailed in the top ten (10.0, 7.0 and 4.0), the Cork Harbour pair are just seven points off the overall lead. 

Ireland's third boat at the event, Royal Cork's Jonathan O'Shaughnessy, is 31st from 50 in the boy's ILCA 6 fleet.

All results here.

The breeze started around midday at 5 knots, climbing to around 12 to 13 knots by late afternoon. All 11 events completed their schedule of races for the 433 sailors from 59 nations.

The interesting challenge for the doublehanded teams in the 420 and 29er fleets is that many crews share their supplied boats between the boys and girls teams from the same country.

As Can Erturk and Ali Beren Adamcil (TUR) stepped ashore from winning their opening session in the Male/Mixed division of the 420 class, the young Turks immediately started to re-tune the rig for their female team mates, Nehir Guzeltuna and Derin Acal (TUR).

“They are lighter than us,” said Erturk, “so we help them to set up the mast for flatter sails. We are one boat and four sailors, but we sail for Turkey as one team.”

Behind the Turks in the Male/Mixed 420 is Spain’s crew, Ian Clive Walker March sailing with Finn Dicke (ESP). Spain is also doing well in the girls’ 420 fleet, Neus Ballester Bover and Andrea Perello Mora (ESP) holding a three-point advantage over Camilla Michelini and Margherita Bonifacio (ITA).

In the 29er girls’ fleet, the USA leads, Sophie Fisher and Charlie Leigh (USA) winning two of the three races with Agata Scalmazzi and Giulia Vezzoli (ITA) taking the other win and holding second overall.

The reigning 29er World Champions from Spain, Mateo and Simon Codoner Alemany (ESP) were slow to get going with an 18-6-1 for fourth overall, opening the door for Denmark’s Jens-Christian Dehn-Toftehøj and Carl Emil Sloth (DEN) which leads with a one-point margin over the Nyenhuis brothers from the USA.

It’s even tighter at the top of the ILCA 6 Female fleet, with the front four split by just a point, Norway’s Marie Jacobsen Lepperöd (NOR) in the lead followed by Russia, Czech Republic, and Peru.

Ukraine’s Oskar Madonich (UKR) scored two seconds to take the lead in the ILCA 6 Male division, with two thirds putting José Gomes Saraiva Mendes (POR) in second.

Mirroring the Nacra 17 Mixed Multihull in the Olympic Games, the smaller youth catamaran, the Nacra 15, also sees boys and girls racing together on the same trampoline. Two traditional strongholds of multihull racing – France and the Netherlands – hold the top places, Thomas Proust and Eloïse Clabon (FRA) winning two heats and Olivier Jaquet and Femme Rixt Rijk (NED) taking the other.

In the boys’ kitefoiler division, Italy’s Riccardo Pianosi (ITA) was fast out of the blocks as he powered his 21-metre kite to first place in the opening two heats, followed by a second and third place in the next. This puts the Italian two points ahead of Max Maeder (SGP) who recovered from a DNF (Did Not Finish) in the opening heat, the 15-year-old from Singapore bouncing back with a fourth and two race wins.

In the boys’ windsurfers, Pianosi’s team mate proved utterly dominant racing the Techno 293+ class board. Federico Alan Piloni (ITA) opened with three first places, putting the Italian two points ahead of Great Britain’s Boris Shaw (GBR). The Italian’s team manager is one of Italy’s most highly decorated Olympians, the windsurfing legend Alessandra Sensini.

On the girls’ windsurfers, it was a runaway victory for France’s Manon Pianazza (FRA) with three race wins. However, only two points behind is Zoe Fernandez de Bobadilla Ramos (ESP). On the girls’ kitefoilers, Gal Zukerman (ISR) powered her way to a perfect four first places ahead of Julia Damasiewicz (POL) with a bunch of seconds.

A total of 433 sailors from 56 nations are competing in the 11 events on December 13-17.

After a year’s absence due to COVID, Irish sailors finally have the opportunity to compete at the Youth Sailing World Championships in Oman on Monday. 

As Afloat previously reported, Ireland's team is Eve McMahon in the girl's Laser Radial class, along with Jonathan O’Shaughnessy in the boy's division and Ben O’Shaughnessy and James Dwyer Matthews in the 29er class.

Ireland has had some success in Oman already this winter with eighth place achieved by Robert Dickson and Seán Waddilove at the 49er World Championships, and last week a 17th placing by Aoife Hopkins in the Laser Radial World Championships.

Mussanah’s average temperature in December is a balmy 24 degrees, with average winds of 10-17 knots, although extremely light winds have been a feature of the past world championships.

Racing for both Laser Radials and 29er classes begins on Monday 13 December and continues all week to Friday 17 December.

The Irish Laser Coach is Vasilij Zbogar, and 29er coach Thomas Chaix.

So many 50th Anniversaries in international sailing are being celebrated these days that you could be forgiven for thinking that all these major events - such as next week’s opening of the event’s Golden Jubilee celebration, and the staging of the Youth Sailing Worlds 2021 in Oman - are marking the successful 50 years of an event which came into being in a vacuum. And certainly, the inauguration of the annual Youth Worlds in Sweden way back in 1971 was a major development that has resulted in a globally-recognised supreme peak – a Junior Sailing Olympiad.

Thus the team of four travelling to Oman – Eve McMahon (Howth YC) in the ILCA6, Jonathan O’Shaughnessy (Royal Cork YC) ILCA6, and Ben O’Shaughnessy & James Dwyer (RCYC) in the 29er - are well aware of the weight of expectation on their young shoulders, though all are at the peak of impressive year-long achievements.

But nevertheless, in looking back over the 50 years of the Youth Worlds, the most vividly remembered will be the 2012 event which was of course staged in Dublin Bay, with Finn Lynch leaping into the limelight with a Silver Medal in the Lasers. However, others with a broader view will also remember that the challenge of staging an event of this scale and scope, with Ireland still staggering out of the financial crash of 2008, involved heroic sacrifice and the giving over of their entire summer by folk of the calibre of Brian Craig, while the defining image may well be the remembered vision of on-water organizer Don O’Dowd of the Royal St George YC looking as though he is being fuelled entirely by adrenaline through each frantic day.

Running on adrenaline…..Don O’Dowd in the thick of the 2012 Youth Worlds in Dublin Bay

The financial constraints of 2012 Ireland are not thought to be a problem in 2021 Oman, even if the Sultanate has cheerfully taken on the running of just about every one of 2021’s global sailing championships which had been COVID-shunted out of other countries, and despite the business of overseas teams getting there through the maze of international pandemic prevention providing an added challenge in getting to Oman, arguably the most maritime of all the Gulf States.

But nevertheless, Irish involvement has been a tradition since the event’s inception, and we’ve seen the metal to prove it, the last one in the 20th Century being Laura Dillon & Ciara Peelo’s Bronze in the Laser 2 in 1996 - a busy year for Laura, as she also won the All-Irelands.

As for the 21st Century, in 2014 in Tavira, Seafra Guilfoyle repeated Finn Lynch’s 2012 Silver win, and then in 2016 Doug Elmes of Kilkenny and Colin O’Sullivan of Malahide, sailing jointly under the HYC colours, won Bronze in the 420s in Malaysia.

But is it strictly true to say that it all started in 1971 in Sweden? That it should be Sweden is all of a piece, as the Scandinavian influence in international sailing was formidable at the time. So much so, in fact, that many thought the Optimist dinghy – which was starting to spread at lightning speed – was a Swedish invention, whereas the original narrative is rather more endearing.

Oman with its spectacular coastline is perhaps the most maritime of all the Gulf States – this is Shabab Oman II, the Omani Sail Training Tall Ship.

It seems a Swedish ship was taking on cargo in Florida around 1960 in the Port of Clearwater, where the local kids were sailing a little plywood box-boat, invented in 1947 and called the Optimist. The Swedish captain was impressed, and bought up two or three to take home as his own kids were keen on sailing. Thus the Optimist as an international phenomenon was launched, spreading out from Scandinavia.

So when the Swedes hosted the inaugural World Youth Sailing Championship in 1971, it was already a solidly-founded gold-plated event, and it blew away any other established but more modest championships with similar aims. One of these was something called the International Junior Regatta, which claimed world status, but whose heartlands were in mainland Northwest Europe and Scandinavia, and it was basically an inter-club event for national teams selected by the premier clubs (ie the poshest) in each country.

For twenty years from the 50s and 60s onwards, ace Dun Laoghaire helm Terry Roche of the Royal St George YC cruised the coasts of Europe in his 19-ton Hillyard cutter Neon Tetra (crazy name, crazy boat), and built up an unrivalled contact list with these top clubs and the key people in them. Thus the RStGYC became the organising club for Ireland, and staged the International Junior Regatta when it was hosted here.

George Henry (RStGYC) and Douglas Deane (Royal Munster YC) hoisting sail on their allocated Mermaid in the International Junior Regatta in Dun Laoghaire in 1955.

The late Dougie Deane of Cork remembered being sent up to Dun Laoghaire in 1955 to be part of the Irish squad, but as the racing was staged in Mermaids – at that time the only class in sufficient numbers of matched boats in Dun Laoghaire to stage an international invitational regatta of this sort - it wasn’t his happiest experience, as he was to become more accustomed to sailing to success in his own IDRA 14 Dusk with Donal McClement as crew.

However, as the 1960s gathered pace, the rapid development of Malahide as a powerhouse of rising talent began to show through in Irish participation in the International Junior Regatta, particularly when the Malahide effect began to be felt in Howth and brought forth the remarkable sailing talents of the “two sisters crew”, Margaret and Lee Cuffe-Smith, daughters of future HYC Commodore Bill Cuffe-Smith, who was no slouch himself when it came to inshore and offshore racing success.

The Irish Team at the 1965 International Junior Regatta in Denmark were (left to right) Robin Hennessy, Margaret Cuffe-Smith, Robert Michael, Lee Cuffe-Smith and Manager Terry Roche

The Irish team first leapt to fame in 1965 when the International Junior Regatta was staged at Skovshoved in Denmark, raced in International Snipes powered by as-equal-as-possible new Elvstrom sailed. The Cuffe-Smiths won the Girls Division, while the boys crew of Malahide’s Robin Hennessy and Robert Michael (a combination that later went on to win the coveted Endeavour Trophy in Enterprises in England) placed fourth to make Ireland second overall.

While Margaret and Lee Cuffe-Smith continued as the Irish girls representatives for much of the rest of the 1960s, Malahide furnished a changing lineup of top boy sailors, and in 1967 at Loosdrecht in the Netherlands, it was future Olympic Silver Medallist David Wilkins crewed by Philip Watson (yes, that Philip Watson), who provided the winning male ingredients for Ireland to win the International Junior Regatta Gold Cup for the first time, the podium points being Ireland 3415, Denmark 2973, and Finland 2747.

World Champions. The all-conquering 1967 Irish Team in the International Junior Regatta in The Netherlands were (left to right) Philip Watson, Lee Cuffe-Smith, manager Terry Roche, David Wilkins (Olympic Silver Medallist 1980) and Margaret Cuffe-Smith.

The Irish team then repeated this performance in 1968 racing Flying Juniors at Alghero Bay in Sardinia. Thereafter, our top junior talents were moving into more senior racing, and sailing was opening up to a more democratic system, even if the new World Youth Championship in 1971 continued to manifest the all-powerful Scandinavian influence, but in time its worldwide locations reflected the new reality.

That said, it’s a cherishable thought that somewhere in the world in some fusty ancient clubs where the wearing of white-topped yachting caps and the onset of premature middle age is the norm, there are old buffers still discussing the need to provide some special sport in an International Junior Regatta for the young people, even as we see in Oman the glorifying of international sport as a tool of international commerce and a weapon of global politics, with fashionable clothing styles and accessories to match.

A timely reminder of the joys of sailing – Jonathan O’Shaughnessy in action on Lake Garda

She’s struck gold! Jonathan O’Shaughnessy and Eve McMahon at Lake Garda after the Worlds in July

The Irish team fly out next Wednesday (December 8th), and as the main event officially opens on Saturday, December 11th, they’ve little enough time to acclimatize. Jonathan O’Shaughnessy has the advantage of a recent intensive training session in Valencia (Spain, not Kerry), but Eve McMahon has been much involved with school exams, making her probably the only World Champion in Ireland to have been in this past week’s exam cohort.

As for the younger pair of Ben – who is Jonathan’s cousin - and James in the 29er, they’ve been first out of the school gates down Cork Harbour way each afternoon in recent weeks for an intensive two-hour session on the boat at Crosshaven. You could call it a One-Boat Twilight Regatta, but with November slithering darkly into December, the Miner’s Lamp Challenge might be a more appropriate title.

Ben O’Shaughnessy and James Dwyer in the 29er – they have been getting in some intensive post-school training at Crosshaven in the last of the daylight in recent weeks

In Oman, the Team Leader and Head Coach will be three times Olympic sailing medallist Vasilij Zbogar, who has been involved with the Irish international sailing effort since 2018. Most recently last month, his supportive work in helping Finn Lynch out of a performance slump to take Silver at the Laser Worlds in Barcelona led everyone to conclude that though he may be from Slovenia, his home is clearly the Slovenian Gaeltacht. And if he and Support Coach Thomas Chaix of Tralee Bay can produce something similar to the Barcelona Breakthrough in Oman, Vasilij will be perceived as the Jurgen Klopp of sailing in Ireland.

Vasilij Zbogar racing an Olympic Finn – he retired from Olympic sailing after the 2016 Games in Rio, having sailed five Olympiads and winning Silver and Bronze in the Laser, and Silver in the Finn in their penultimate appearance as an Olympic Class in 2016

The cut short Investwise Irish Youth Sailing National Championships on Cork Harbour had produced some clear winners in five classes regardless of today's Yellow Alert weather warning at Royal Cork Yacht Club.

Five titles were divided between Dublin and Cork sailors with the host club taking two crowns, the biggest haul of any single club with the 29er and Topper titles won by local sailors.

Both Laser titles go to Dublin, with Howth Yacht Club taking the ILCA 6 and the National Yacht Club winning in the ILCA 4.

The 420 title is shared by a combined Malahide and Wexford duo.

McMahon wins ILCA 6 but Crosbie's Reinstatement Makes it Close

ILCA 6 Champion - Eve McMahon of Howth

As Afloat reported earlier, the final results from Saturday’s long day afloat weren’t initially confirmed as two titles were eventually settled ashore in the protest room this morning.

On Saturday evening, a protest by ILCA6 (Laser Radial) overall leader Eve McMahon saw the Howth Yacht Club sailor extend her lead over Michael Crosbie of the Royal Cork YC when he was disqualified from Race 10 due to a port and starboard incident.

However, the Crosshaven sailor returned to the protest room on Sunday morning to have his result reinstated as McMahon had not informed the race committee of her protest on Saturday.

McMahon still emerged as ILCA6 Youth National Champion after the tie-break with Crosbie.

O'Shaughnessy & Dwyer Lift 29er Skiff Title 

29er Champions - Ben O’Shaughnessy and James Dwyer (Royal Cork YC) Photo: Bob Bateman

Ben O’Shaughnessy and James Dwyer (Royal Cork YC) won the 29er skiff national title by a single point as Afloat reported here after a close contest with Tim Norwood and Nathan Van Steenberge from the Royal Irish YC and National YC respectively in their eleven strong demonstration class that immediately followed a European Championships campaign on Lake Garda last week.

The runners-up were also in the protest room on Sunday morning seeking redress for equipment failure in their second race of the series on Friday but their submission was ruled out of time.

Collins top Toppers, Newcomer Ledoux Wins 4.7s

Topper Champion - Rian Collins of Royal Cork Photo: Bob Bateman

As Afloat reported earlier, Crosshaven’s Rian Collins won the 38-boat Topper class with a 12-point lead over his clubmate Dan O’Leary taking the runner-up place in their seven-race series. Bobby Driscoll's third overall kept the Belfast Lough Topper flag flying.

ILCA 4 Champion - Sam Ledoux of the National YC Photo: Bob Bateman

The Topper fleet shared the same course as the ILCA4 (Laser 4.7) class, the second largest of the event with 31 boats where a newcomer to the class, Sam Ledoux of the National YC, emerged youth national champion. 

Five wins Give McDowell & Thompson the 420 Title

420 champions - Jack McDowell and Henry Thompson Photo: Bob Bateman

The Malahide and Wexford Harbour pairing of Jack McDowell and Henry Thompson continued their three-day lead of the 420 class to win comfortably as Afloat reports here over Eoghan Duffy with Conor Paul of Lough Ree YC in a disappointingly small nine boat class.

Not even a race disqualification can stop the march of Youth World Radial champion Eve McMahon at Royal Cork Yacht Club. 

The Under 18 star from Howth Yacht Club heads a mixed fleet of 30 boys and girls racing for youth national honours in Cork Harbour, where a place at the Oman World Sailing Championships this December is at stake.

After losing her overnight lead due to an opening day race disqualification, McMahon regained her overall lead of the ILCA6 (Laser Radial) division but only after a tiebreak from the chasing Michael Crosbie of the host club.

As well as an impressive scoreline that includes four strikes from ten races, McMahon has also found herself involved in three protests (either as an initiator or respondent) in the championships so far. Details here. 

Conor Galligan of the NYC rasing at the Youth Nationals

Crosbie was disqualified from the last race of the day, returning McMahon to a comfortable seven-point cushion at the top of the 30-boat fleet. 

Meanwhile, Jonathan O'Shaughnessy, the 2021 Radial National Champion who impressed at October's Eurocup, but got off to a poor star on Friday has moved up the rankings to third overall but still eight points behind Crosbie. Results below.

The fleet spent at least six hours on the water with racing delayed waiting for breeze to arrive, plus an extra race was added to the daily schedule.

The extra race was added in anticipation of strong winds on Sunday and fears of a blowout.

ILCA 6/Radial Sailed: 10, Discards: 1, To count: 9, Entries: 30 

National's Ledoux Still leads 4.7s 

Sam Ledoux of the National YC leads the ILCA4 (Laser 4.7) fleet with 31 boats. After seven races sailed, the Dun Laoghaire Harbour campaigner has extended his lead on Royal St. George rival Matteo Ciaglia and now has a six-point margin. Royal Cork's Mauro G Regueral Nogguerol scoresheet has been updated to remove an earlier DNF from race two, a decision that puts the Spaniard into third overall. 

ILCA 4 Sailed: 7, Discards: 1, To count: 6, Entries: 32

Racing is scheduled for Sunday, but a forecast for strong winds looks set to cut the championships short.

Update Sunday 09.24: Due to current wind conditions and forecast, the race committee has decided to cancel sailing for the day. Prizegiving at 10 am in the marquee

ILCA 4 & 6 Day Three Youth Nationals Photo Gallery By Bob Bateman 

Howth Yacht Club Laser Radial sailors share the top two places overall at the Investwise Youth Sailing Championships in Cork Harbour after six races sailed. 

There was no surprise yesterday when the World Radial Youth Female champion Eve McMahon leapt to the front of the fleet, almost unchallenged in yesterday's opening three races. 

The U18 champion continued her form to have a winning margin after today's race of seven points after six races sailed.

She proved consistent even in the tricky conditions and has a clean scoresheet except for two-second places scored in races three and four.

McMahon's clubmate Rocco Wright counted a race win, as did Michael Crosbie of the RCYC, level on points.

Good fleet awareness in variable conditions was the key to success in the ILCA divisions, where there are 30 boat fleets in both classes. Photo: Bob Bateman.

Racing on the Curlane Bank race area, close to Crosshaven, shifting winds eventually permitted three races to be completed.

ILCA 6: Sailed: 6, Discards: 1, To count: 5, Entries: 30

National Yacht Club's Ledoux Leads ILCA 4s

Sam Ledoux of the National YC leads the ILCA4 (Laser 4.7) Class. The Dun Laoghaire Harbour ace has a two-point lead over neighbour Matteo Ciaglia of the Royal St. George. Local helm Max Tolan is lying third in the 32-boat fleet after three races sailed. Results below.

Racing continues tomorrow.

ILCA 4: Sailed: 3, Discards: 0, To count: 3, Entries: 32

ILCA 4 & 6 Day Two Youth Nationals Photo Gallery by Bob Bateman

No surprise that Howth Yacht Club’s Eve McMahon established an early overall lead in the ILCA 6/Radial class at the Investwise Irish Youth Sailing National Championships on Cork Harbour today. 

The 2021 Radial Youth World Champion took two first places and a second in the opening three races of the event that sees a fleet of 30 assembled at Royal Cork Yacht Club.

Winds ranged from light to medium on the Curlane Bank course on the opening day.

McMahon's clubmate Rocco Wright took the other race win though had a mixed set of results to lie seventh overall. 

Michael Crosbie of the host club leads the chasing pack in second place but still some ten points behind McMahon.

Irish Radial national champion Jonathan O'Shaughnessy sits in ninth place after counting a 19th in race three.

Racing continues tomorrow.

ILCA 6 Sailed: 3, Discards: 0, To count: 3, Entries: 30

Youth World ILCA 6/Laser Radial Champion Eve McMahon from Howth Yacht Club is a clear favourite for success at this Thursday's youth sailing championships hosted by Royal Cork Yacht Club and sponsored by Investwise.

Former Irish youth champion McMahon, who earned more international stripes this month with a senior world championship race win in Bulgaria, is embarked on a campaign to represent Ireland at Paris 2024, so there's no doubt the U18 sailor will be putting her impressive boat speed on show in Cork Harbour. 

This month, laser sailors have been training on the Royal Cork race track with Tokyo trialist Aisling Keller as a coach in advance of the championships.

Tralee Bay's Ellie Cunnane (right) Photo: Bob Bateman

The closest guide to form is the 2021 Laser National Championships held in Royal Cork back in August. At that event – in which McMahon did not compete – Tralee Bay's Ellie Cunnane was third overall and top Girl in the 46-boat national championship fleet.

Cunnane will be racing on Cork waters again next week, but there will be no doubting McMahon's speed advantage, especially in breeze. The sixth-year student demonstrated that with a consistent scoreline on Lake Garda in August to take the Girl's worlds crown, as Afloat reported here.

Laser 4.7 sailing in Cork Harbour

Next week, four-course areas will operate for the youth championships in Cork Habour; Aghada, Curlane Bank, Cuskinny and Roches Point with an 11-race schedule for the ILCA 6/Laser class.

Racing begins on Thursday, October 28th, and as well as deciding national honours, the event serves as the second part of a qualifications system to determine Ireland's representative at the Youth World Sailing Championships in Oman this December.