Ireland's team finished fourth at the Student Match Racing World Championships at the weekend, the highest-placed team not to contain professional or near full-time match racers on their squad.
Facing the Australian ladies' Olympic match racing team in the third place playoff, a team who had been campaigning full-time for the last two years, the Irish team won the first race, only to see the result pulled over a protest.
"The first race we won," said team captain Marty O'Leary, "but was re-sailed after the other team protested that we were over the line but the committee had not called us back, and the Aussies got the Aussie and English coach to witness we were over, and the PRO was on our side, but they jury decided on a re sail after an hour of deliberation."
"Sure these things happen," he said.
"AUS went on to win the re-sail and take third place, GBR won the worlds over all, with Australia [mens] in second and Ireland in fourth."
"We would just like to say a huge thank you for all the support on behalf of the whole team, we learnt a lot at this event, and the standard was very very high, with numerous teams going for the Olympics in 2012 in London, we did ourselves DIT and Ireland proud. Now the rush to make it home for Cork Week!"
