RYA Volvo Team GBR 420 success

Annabel Vose and Megan Brickwood top Youth boat at Nieuwpoort Week

While RYA Volvo Team GBR are about to embark on the biggest week of their Youth sailing careers as they prepare to set sail at the ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships, a selection of other promising young sailors have also been flying the flag for Great Britain as three 420 crews from the RYA Volvo Youth Racing programme have finished first, second and third in the 420 Youth class at Nieuwpoort week, Belgium this week.

Annabel Vose, 17, (Curdridge/Royal Southern Yacht Club) and Megan Brickwood, 16, (Hamble/Hayling Island Sailing Club), current 420 Female World Champions, finished the week off in spectacular fashion by finishing top Youth boat (second overall behind GBR Mike Wood/ Hermione Stanley). The pair narrowly missed out on the RYA Volvo Team GBR spot at the RYA Volvo Youth National Championships (April) which would have seen them competing at the ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships 2011. The pair proved dominant throughout the week posting consistent results across all counting races.

Following up in second place (third overall) in the 420 Youth fleet was Toby Morsley (Gwynedd/ Portdinorwic Sailing Club) and Matt Wallis (Hants/ Spinnaker & Royal Lymington YC) while Harry Derbyshire (Emsworth/Emsworth SC) and Tom Lovesey (Hants/ Royal Lymington YC) followed closely behind in third (fourth overall). RYA Volvo Youth Squad and RYA Volvo Transitional Squad sailors were supported at the event by RYA Coaches Neil Marsden and Jonny McGovern.

Roy McCubbin, RYA Double Handed Pathway Manager, commented: “It’s fantastic to have GBR boats filling the top four positions at a quality European international regatta. Nieuwpoort Week is becoming extremely popular and is being recognised as a pivotal regatta on the Youth sailing calendar. There were in excess of 50 boats in the 420 fleet including competitors from Australia, confirming the significance of this regatta.

McCubbin concluded: “This is an excellent start to the summer racing period, and it will no doubt be a great confidence boost for the sailors as they now prepare for the Open European Championships in southern Portugal. The event is closely followed by the Junior Europeans which will be held in Nieuwpoort.”