The 2024 World Sailing Youth Match Racing World Championship, hosted by the Saudi Sailing Federation in conjunction with Jeddah Yacht Club & Marina and World Sailing, kicked off on the 29th of November, marking the beginning of an exciting week of competitive sailing in Saudi Arabia. Under clear skies and a building sea breeze on the Red Sea, the first day of racing unfolded with quality racing as teams from Australia, Brazil, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, and the United States of America all competing to become World Champions.
The leading performance on Day 1 came from the Australian team representing the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia. Led by skipper Cole Tapper, the team had a strong opening day, scoring all six wins from their opening six races in the qualifying stage. Their performance has set the tone for the rest of the competition, as they aim to maintain their momentum through the knockout rounds. While the Aussies made a strong start, other teams including defending World Champion Ange Delerce from France and New Zealander Josh Hyde also signaled clear intent to be amongst the front runners heading into Stage 2.
On the second day, near-perfect conditions again greeted the twelve teams, representing ten nations this week. An early morning light 6 – 8 knot North-Westerly continued to build throughout the day, slowly clocking right and building to 13 – 16 knots before racing concluded at sunset. The big mover on Day 2 saw Sweden’s Marius Westerlind climb from 9th to 3rd, showing his year’s of experience at this level, now competing in his fifth world championship. Denmark also made a big recovery from 11th to 7th and qualified for the quarter-finals.
Day 3 of the 2024 World Sailing Youth Match Racing World Championship delivered another thrilling day of racing, with Australia, France, Sweden, and New Zealand securing spots in the Final Four. These four teams battled for the World Championship title on the Red Sea. The conditions were ideal once again, with a moderate north-westerly breeze ranging from 8 to 12 knots. Racing kicked off at 10:00hrs, completing the final two flights of the qualifying stage. The first match of the day featured a rematch of the 2023 World Championship Final between Australia and France. The French team emerged victorious after a costly mistake by the Australians during the top mark rounding, which allowed France to capitalize and take the win. Despite this setback, Australia came back strong in their final round-robin match against New Zealand, securing a comfortable win to claim second place in the standings.
The Quarter-Final matchups saw a series of upsets, with Australia’s Cole Tapper, France’s Ange Delerce, New Zealand’s Josh Hyde, and Sweden’s Marius Westerlind all securing spots in the semifinals. By the end of the Quarter-Finals, the USA, France 2 (Rossi), Ireland, and Denmark were eliminated from contention. Australia team was paired against Trans-Tasman rivals from New Zealand. The Australians had the might over the New Zealanders in all three starts, and around the race track to comfortably book the first berth in the Finals 3 – 0. In the other semi-finals, regatta leader, Ange Delerce from France chose to race Marius Westerlind from Sweden, who put up an amazing fight, however eventually fell to the French 3 -2.
Final saw Australia with Cole Tapper, Hamish Vass, Jack Frewin, Chelsea Williams & Joel Beashel turning the tables on defending champions Ange Delerce, Julia D’Amodio, Julien Bunel, Sylvestre De Giuli Morghen and Thomas Flachon Sanchez of France, to dominate the Finals Series, winning 3 – 0. The Australian crew went undefeated through the Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals and Finals to claim victory over ten nations in one of the most comprehensive victories at these World Championships.
The results can be found on the following link: 2024 Youth Match Racing World Championships – Overall Placings
Text Credits: Sail Saudi
Photo Credits: ICARUS Sports
