Who are the names to watch at the 2022 Irish Sailing Youth Nationals ?
214 sailors compete this week at the 2022 Irish Sailing Youth Nationals, but who are the ones to watch ?
As well as 2021 Irish Sailing Youth Sailor of the Year and last year’s ILCA6 (Laser Radial) winner, Eve McMahon, the full Irish Sailing Academy will compete: Jonathan O’Shaughnessy, Sophie Kilmartin, Rocco Wright, Fiachra McDonnell, Luke Turvey and Oisin Hughes. Dark horses in the class might be Stephen Cunnane (Tralee Bay SC) and Justin Lucas (RCYC) who spent lockdown honing his hockey skills and is now back into the ILCA 6.
In the ILCA 4 (Laser 4.7s), names to watch are Sienna Wright (Howth YC) younger sister of Rocco and topping up her international experience competing at the Vilamora Grand Prix and the recent Europa Cup in Valencia. Krzysztof Ciborowski (Royal St George YC) is a past member of Irish Sailing ILCA 4 Team who represented the nation at the Laser 4.7 World Championships in Dun Laoghaire last year. He’s been putting in some great results in the recent sprint regattas in Dublin. Local sailor Daniel Palmer (Ballyholme YC) will have the advantage of local knowledge and came 4th in the class in Cork last year.
In the 29ers class, Emily Conan and Lauren O’Callaghan (Royal St George) are a newly formed partnership over the winter along with Johnny Flynn (Howth) and Ethan Spain.
In the Toppers, Bobby Driscoll (Ballyholme YC) won the Topper Winter Regatta at RNIYC in March and Autumn Halliday came second in the same regatta (Strangford Lough YC).
Max Passberger and Jack Maree (Waterford Harbour SC) came fourth at the 2021 Youth National Championships in the 420 class, with reigning champions Jack McDowell and Henry Thompson (Malahide YC). Younger sister Isabelle Passberger and Sarah Clooney (Waterford Harbour SC) also sails in the same class having graduated from the Toppers.
The Optimists are the largest class on the racecourse. Caoilinn Geraghty-McDonnell (younger sister of Fiachra, Royal St George YC) will be one of the front runners. She came first at the Optimist National Championships in 2021; RCYC’s Oisin Pierse finished 3rd at the same event, and Harry Dunn of Howth YC was winner of the Halloween regatta in Malahide in October.
We would like to encourage all sailors, families and their guests to attend the evening talks after racing:
- Thursday
- Ulster Wildlife and Clean Seas Regatta campaign
- Friday
- Irish Sailing coaches Sean Evans, Milan Vujasinovic and RYANI Performance Manager Andrew (Hammy) Baker will talk on fitness and health, with a racing debrief
- Saturday
- Irish sailor Liam Glynn (read Liam’s top tips for Ballyholme in his interview HERE