Announcement

**Photoboy** · 07-19-2018, 12:21 PM

There May Be Hope For USA Sailing After All

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (July 18, 2018) – In a day filled with superlative performances from Team USA at the 48th annual World Sailing Youth Championships, the pinnacle event for youth sailors, none was harder earned than Chase Carraway’s showing in the Boys’ Laser Radial.

Carraway (Wrightsville Beach, N.C.) didn’t post back-to-back first-place finishes as some of his teammates, but his 2-5 in the largest class in the fleet (58 boats) was every bit as impressive. The Boys’ Laser Radial is always one of the most hotly contested classes at this regatta, and Carraway has been steadily climbing the leaderboard since Day 1.

“I had a solid day today, two low scores,” said Carraway. “It’s really exciting. I’m just chipping away at the leaders.”

Carraway has now posted three consecutive top-five finishes to climb into fourth overall, 10 points behind leader Josh Armit of New Zealand but only 1 point behind third-placed Zac Littlewood of Australia, the reigning Men’s Laser Radial World Champion.

Carraway echoed many in the fleet who have said that the windy and choppy conditions of Corpus Christi Bay have taken some getting used to. But he feels that he’s finding his groove and is clearly excited for the final three races scheduled in the class.

“I’m starting to get my bearings for the venue. It’s definitely different than any other place I’ve sailed before,” said Carraway, whose simultaneously anxious and nervous parents are watching from the shoreline.

“I’m getting in the groove upwind and downwind and going as fast as I can. The steep chop is tough. I’m used to sailing in the ocean with rolling waves. It’s definitely different; the technique is a lot different than ocean sailing. It requires a lot of small adjustments. Being precise is key,” Carraway said.

At the mid-point of a physically and mentally taxing regatta, Carraway is looking forward to closing out with a push onto the podium.

“We have two more solid days of racing ahead of us, and recovery is really important,” Carraway said. “There’s definitely a group up top that hikes harder than everyone else. It’ll be interesting to see how everyone keeps up with their fitness.”

While Carraway made a nice move up the leaderboard, other American teams started putting a stranglehold on their classes. JC Hermus (Bellport, N.Y.) and Walter Henry (Syosset, N.Y.) won today’s two races in the Boys’ 420 Class and now lead by 5 points over second-placed Otto Henry and Rome Featherstone of Australia.

“It feels good. Our speed was good coming into today,” said Hermus, the skipper who’ll sail for the U.S. Naval Academy collegiate team this fall. “. Today was simple overall as far as windshifts. We started at the pin end and played the shifts from there. It was a pretty straightforward day.”

The duo won both races by very comfortable margins but they’re not losing their concentration despite not really being challenged.

“When we have the lead, instead of losing concentration it’s more a matter of setting back in our own skin and just realizing that we’re ahead,” said Henry. “There’s no reason to push it. We stay calm and preserve the sails to be as ready as possible for the next race.”

Their teammates in the Girls’ 420 Class, Carmen and Emma Cowles (both Larchmont, N.Y.) also won two more races. They now lead their class by 9 points over Vita Heathcote and Emilia Boyle of Great Britain and Spain’s Julia Minana Delhom and Silvia Sebastia Borso di Carminati, who are tied for second.

The Cowles twins are also winning races by a handy margin. According to Hermus, the two crews spent time training prior to this regatta and discovered a few tricks.

“We worked together with the girls the past few months, getting our sails and settings setup,” said Hermus. “We figured out a few things but, honestly, I can’t elaborate.”

According to Henry, it might just be staying smart. “Today was about making sure our risk management was in check. There was no need to take unnecessary risks.”

[IMGhttp://pressure-drop.us/imagehost/images/45016919516170889251.jpg[/IMG]

In the Boys’ RS:X Class, Geronimo Nores (Miami Beach, Fla.) continues to set the pace that he established on Day 1. Nores finished 1-1-3 today and leads the class by 5 points over Italy’s Nicolo Renna. The 6-foot, 6-inch sailor believes his height is an advantage in the windy conditions.

“I’m about the tallest guy out there,” said Nores. “It’s an advantage because it’s so windy. It helps for leverage and power.”

Charlotte Rose (Houston, Texas) also had another solid day in the Girls’ Laser Radial Class. She finished 1-2 and leads Emma Savelon of the Netherlands by 5 points with three races to sail.

In the Girls’ 29er Class, Berta Puig (Miami, Fla.) and Bella Casaretto (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) added a 9-2 to their scoreline and remain in third place with 37 points, 19 points off the lead and 16 points behind second place.

In the Nacra 15 Class, Nico Martin (Houston, Texas) and AnaClare Sole (Houston, Texas) were lined up for a good finish in the first race when they capsized just before the finish line. They posted finishes of 17-9-11 on the day and hold 10th place overall in the multihull class.

In the Girls’ RS:X Class Dominique Stater (Miami, Fla.) holds 13th place. In the Boys’ 29er Class, Charlie Hibben (Concord, Mass.) and Nicholas Hardy (Newton, Mass.) are placed 17th overall.

Racing is scheduled to continue tomorrow with 23 races planned among the nine classes.

RESULTS

**Carl Spackler** · 07-19-2018, 02:21 PM

Murica!

**Charlie Tuna** · 07-19-2018, 02:31 PM

Good news, but to temper expectations, the event is being held in Texas and some of the best in the world probably did not attend.

But good on these kids!

**Photoboy** · 07-20-2018, 11:12 AM

The Faces Of American Youth Sailing Success

2018 Youth Sailing World Championship
Corpus Christi, Texas, USA

The fourth day of the 48th Youth Sailing world Championships saw six class winners crowned gold medalists.
The Youth Worlds has become the pinnacle sailing event for teenagers aged 16-18. Past gold medalists have gone on to very successful careers in the upper echelons of the sport. Whether American Geronimo Nores (Boys' RS:X), Islay Watson of Great Britain (Girls' RS:X), Argentinians Teresa Romairone and Dante Cittadini (Nacra 15), Josh Armit of New Zealand (Laser Radial Boys'), Charlotte Rose of the U.S.A. (Laser Radial Girls') and Joseph Hermus and Walter Henry (USA) (Boys' 420) follow in those footsteps remains to be seen.

Tonight they're reveling in the fact that they've won a gold medal at a world championships with one race to spare.

Nores leads the Boys' RS:X Class with 16 points, good for a seven-point lead over Italian Nicolo Renna. Nores scored eight wins in his 11 counted races and is discarding a fourth. Although he doesn't have to sail tomorrow, he still plans to.

All images © Jen Edney/World Sailing

"It feels great. I'm very excited," said Nores. "All of the preparation we did in terms of windy sailing, non-windy sailing board preparation, gear preparation, coaches… it all came together. Sometimes it comes together, sometimes it doesn't. I'm lucky that this is one of the times that it did."

Nores only resumed sailing a few months ago after spending close to eight months combating a severe case of diabetes. He was racing in Europe last year when the disease struck him hard. He has a working canine, Luna, by his side at all times to alert him if his blood sugar levels drop dangerously low and also wears a patch on his arm to help regulate the levels.
"This is my first international podium in a while," said Nores. "For everything to work out is a long time coming. There's a lot of personal satisfaction in this."

Watson won the Girls' RS:X Class on the strength of three first-place finishes today. She began the day in third place, three points off the lead, but leap-frogged Veerle ten Have of New Zealand and Giorgia Speciale of Italy after dominating on the water.

It is Watson's first Youth Worlds and first gold medal.

"It was a cool day, great conditions. They suited me and I made the most of it," said Watson. "I knew I was only a few points away and I went into the day thinking I can get three firsts and get up there. And that's what I did."

Watson, ten Have and Speciale have had a great battle all week, never separated by more than five points. Watson said the windy conditions suited her style and she kept improving each day.

"Today my downwinds were a lot better and I didn't make many mistakes on the laylines. That's what kept me in front," said Watson. "I'm pretty tired at this point. The days have been long; a long week with big conditions. It's been tough."

In the Nacra 15 Class, Romairone and Cittadini warmed up for the Youth Olympic Games in October by slaying the class. Romairone raced the Youth Worlds last year in the 29er Class and placed 18th. This year, Romairone and Cittadini have 10 top-three finishes and a fifth in their scoreline for the low score of 26 points, good for a 33-point lead over Greta Stewart and Tom Fyfe of New Zealand. With 24 entries in the class and their discard currently a sixth, they can't be touched.

Next to clinch their class victory was American Charlotte Rose in the Girls' Laser Radial Class. Rose won both races today and holds an unassailable 11-point lead over Emma Savelon of the Netherlands.

Upon returning to the boat park Rose plopped down on the pavement and let out a big sigh. Her hands were torn to shreds.

"I'm exhausted," said Rose. "My ratchet block broke in between races and we didn't have time to replace it. I was just hanging on for the second race."

The ratchet block helps prevent the mainsheet from running out when the sheet is loaded up. That Rose was able to sail without it in 18- to 22-knot winds is testament to her strength and determination-she was last year's gold medalist and focused on making history.

"No one in the past 10 years has won this class twice in a row, so it's a great feeling," said the 17-year-old Rose. "In my head I put in so much time and effort that I know I deserve to win it as much as anyone else."

New Zealand's Josh Armit kept the gold rush going by grabbing the Laser Radial Boys' title. A 1-2 ensured he goes into tomorrow' final race with a seven point cushion over Juan Cardozo (ARG) and Zac Littlewood (AUS).

Next it was JC Hermus's and Walter Henry's turn to clinch gold in the Boys' 420 Class. The American duo finished 1-5 today. The fifth-place finish becomes their discard and they have the low score of 10 points, good for an 11-point lead over last year's gold medalists Otto Henry and Rome Featherstone of Australia, who seem assured of winning silver.

"It feels great," said Henry. "Everything came together at this event. We've been sailing together for two years and have had lots of ups and downs, but it all paid off."

Hermus had to lose 18 pounds in the past month in order to weigh in for the regatta.

"Losing weight was the sacrifice," said Hermus, who's on leave from the U.S. Naval Academy. "I lost the weight through dieting and running. I guess the Navy helped a bit that way."

In the Boys' 29er Class, Norwegians Mathias Berthet and Alexander Franks-Penty increased their odds of winning the gold medal by posting a 2-1-5 today. Berthet and Franks-Penty have totaled 34 points and lead Seb Lardies and Scott Mckenzie of New Zealand by 10 points and Australians Henry Larkings and Miles Davey by 15 points in third.

The Norwegians compatriots in the Girls' 29er Class, Pia Andersen and Nora Edland, also hold the lead in their class. They trailed Russians Zoya Novikova and Diana Sabirova by three points entering the day and then went out and posted a 7-1-1 to regain the lead with the low score of 30 points. The Russians finished 4-14-15 today to tumble into third place which allowed Berta Puig and Bella Casaretto of the U.S.A to ascend to second place. Puig and Casaretto have 48 points and a three-point cushion on the Russians with one race to sail.

In the Girls' 420 Class Carmen and Emma Cowles are on the verge of winning their second consecutive gold medal. They won both races today and hold an 11-point lead over Vita Heathcote and Emilia Boyle of Great Britain.

http://www.worldsailingywc.org/news/...p#.W1Ilv9KpHRY

**Bitchin Bow Dude** · 07-20-2018, 11:24 AM

FINALLY!
Great job by all!
But when do the kite foilers join in the fun?

**Photoboy** · 07-20-2018, 06:31 PM

PROJECT PIPELINE DELIVERS MEDAL HAUL AT YOUTH WORLDS
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (July 20, 2018) – The US Sailing Team at the Youth World Sailing Championships hauled in four gold medals and a silver at the 48th annual competition.

Carmen and Emma Cowles (both Larchmont, N.Y.) repeated as gold medalists in the Girls’ 420 Class and Charlotte Rose (Houston, Texas) did the same in the Girls’ Laser Radial Class. Geronimo Nores (Miami Beach, Fla.) won gold in the Boys’ RS:X Class and JC Hermus (Bellport, N.Y.) and Walter Henry (Syosset, N.Y.) equaled the feat in the Boys’ 420 Class.

Berta Puig (Miami, Fla.) and Bella Casaretto (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) won silver in the Girls’ 29er Class. And although he didn’t medal, Chase Carraway (Wrightsville Beach, N.C.) made his presence felt in the Boys’ Laser Radial by placing fifth while Nico Martin (Houston, Texas) and AnaClare Solé (Houston, Texas) won the final two races in the Nacra 15 Class to place seventh.

Dominique Stater (Miami, Fla.) placed 13th in the Girls’ RS:X Class and Charlie Hibben (Concord, Mass.) and Nicholas Hardy (Newton, Mass.) finished 17th in the Boys’ 29er Class. All three gained valuable experience for future competitions.

The US Team’s performance was dominant on the water. The Boys’ and Girls’ 420 teams were winning by such large margins that the chasing pack was rarely in the same frame. Nores won nine of 12 races and Rose had six wins and two seconds in her scoreline.

Throughout the week the U.S. sailors have comported themselves in a manner well beyond their teen ages. They’ve never gotten too far ahead of themselves and have relied on the process put in place by the coaches to stay on an even keel.

“Rosie has a quote that she lives by: trust the process,” said Rose, speaking of team leader Rosie Chapman. “Trust that the training and hard work that you’ve put in in the gym pays off. Trust yourself. I know how to start and go around the racecourse fast. The process brings confidence to the team.”

The success of the US Youth Team is of no surprise to Leandro Spina, the Olympic Development Director for US Sailing. Spina emphasized that the sailors deserve credit for the success, but the success is the result of Project Pipeline, the process put in place roughly four years ago to develop the next generation of Olympic sailors.

Project Pipeline is the strategy behind a new-look Olympic Development Program that aims to better serve young sailors, lead them into high-performance boats earlier in their development, and build well-rounded sailors with complete skill sets. Providing training and racing opportunities with world-class coaching and the highest level of technical standards are the core principles of the initiative.

Project Pipeline led to sweeping changes with regards to the classes that were supported by US Sailing and the way that youth teams were selected. Those changes weren’t readily accepted by all parties at the time, but the team that competed in Corpus Christi is the fruit of those efforts.

“We have a lot of pieces in the U.S.—regional programs, strong one-design associations and the parents of the sailors—but there wasn’t a vision of how to put them together to work efficiently,” Spina said. “We started working with those key stakeholders to organize a cohesive effort to support the athletes’ growth.

“The starting point was a little rocky, but this performance is the result of a huge team effort,” Spina continued. “I’m extremely proud that we’ve been able to put all the resources together. It allows everyone to be different but go forward in the right direction. At the end of the day, that’s what makes the U.S. strong.”

Project Pipeline is the vision of past Olympian Bob Billingham (silver medal in 1988), who passed away in 2014. Billingham was a member of Paul Cayard’s AmericaOne syndicate when it advanced to the Louis Vuitton Cup Final in 2000. The AmericaOne Foundation kickstarted Project Pipeline with a $5 million donation in the winter of 2015.

“AmericaOne was the first believer and supporter of our vision. They came in with the financial resources and advice on decision making and business strategy,” said Spina, who fights back emotions when speaking about Billingham. “Bob had the vision of how we can help the next generation to accomplish their dreams. He’s not here with us today, but I know this was his dream and here it is. We owe him a lot. This is his legacy.”

“The process” includes past Olympians such as Anna Tunnicliffe, Charlie McKee, Morgan Reeser and technical director Grant “Fuzz” Spanhake, the past America’s Cup sail designer. It includes the donation of resources from North Sails and professional sailing teams such as AmericaOne, Quantum Racing and Jim Menzies, American Magic and Oracle Team USA. Private benefactors have also played an instrumental role. It includes coaches such as Rosie Chapman, Steve Keen, Phil Muller, Rulo Borojovich, Brendan Casey and others.

“Yes, I thought we could pull gold medals out of a hat,” Spina said. “We always say that there’s no excuses. It’ a process and you have to be patient. We have all the pieces. This is not a surprise. This is a dream come true.”

Expect to see this generation of youth sailors on the scene for years to come. Rose, Nores, Hermus and Henry are all off to college in the fall and plan to race on the collegiate scene.

Nores has said that he would like to race at the Pan Am Games next year and then try for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. Rose said that she likely won’t try for Tokyo because she’ll be in the middle of college but does have an eye towards 2024.

Project Pipeline is just starting to produce the results that were dreamed of four years ago, but if the process is adhered to it could keep delivering gold well into the future.

For complete results please visit the Youth Worlds results page.LINKY

Sean McNeill

Announcement

Team usa commands four classes at youth worlds

Team usa commands four classes at youth worlds

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