True learning experience at Youth World Championships

Four young sailors represented South Africa at the Youth Sailing World Championships in Poland from 13-20 July 2019. While, they may not have achieved the results they necessarily set out to, they all returned having learned invaluable lessons about what it takes to make it to the top.

By the end of the week, Cullen Keytel had finished 29^th overall in the Laser Radial class, having achieved a best result of 11^th. Isabella Wright was 38^th overall with a best result 18^th in her opening race. The duo of Liam Gunning and Stephanie Goodyer finished 20^th overall in their Nacra 15.

We caught up with some of the sailors to find out about their experiences:

Stephanie Goodyer:

“Sailing the Nacra 15 was a challenge on its own. I knew before we left South Africa that we had a lot of odds stacked against us. I knew the level we were going to compete on was beyond anything we can find in South Africa. This theory was soon proven correct as we sailed against other Nacra 15s. The intensity of sailing In Europe is on a different level. We trained with fellow Youth Worlds teams and we quickly learnt our place in the fleet.

Training in Garda definitely opened our eyes to the level of competition we were going to be exposed to. We learnt as much as possible in the short time we had on Garda and got to know our fellow teams. This training period definitely helped us gain a bit of confidence but also helped us stay humble in our sailing.

From Italy we headed with spirits high to Poland. We knew the challenge ahead of us but we headed in with the right attitude. We took one race at a time and faced each challenge together. Worlds was absolutely amazing in terms of organisation and planning.

Racing was tough and one error meant the entire race was gone. We had some brilliant starts and often found ourselves in the top 10 at the top mark, but due to limited knowledge of the Nacra, our boat was not set up to ideal conditions so we lost out on boat speed. But even though we were finishing near the back we knew we had potential to do well. This helped us keep our head on straight and instead of becoming disheartened we decided to learn instead.

We took on all advice given and this definitely showed up in our racing as we managed to get a near top-10 result in one of our races. My recommendation to any team looking to compete on the Nacra in the future is that you will need almost three or more months training on the boat before you even enter the event.

No boat matches the Nacra 15’s power or speed and set-up is completely different to other boats. If you do go, have fun and enjoy yourself. Take in every moment as it is a once-in-a- lifetime opportunity and you will definitely remember this event for the rest of your life. Keep your wits about yourself as you will be challenged to the max but keep believing in yourself as you are capable.

Liam and I will forever be grateful for getting this opportunity to compete at such a prestigious event and we cannot wait to continue competing at such a level In the future. Thank you to everyone who supported us and thank you to our awesome team who we enjoyed an amazing event with.

Liam Gunning:

When we left for Youth Worlds we had no idea what to expect... our 10 days of training in Italy was extremely eye-opening as it showed us the intensity and level of sailing there is overseas.

We trained with some of the other Youth Worlds competitors on Lake Garda and this really showed us how great of a task this would be. Sailing on Lake Garda for me was an amazing experience. We shared the water and the slipway with some of the world’s best sailors, from the Italian Nacra 17 Olympic team to some of the world’s best Moth sailors. Sailing the Nacra 15 for the first time was also an amazing experience when we weren’t on our side... This training was invaluable as it gave us time to adapt to this very different boat.

Our first race at the worlds was very humbling and we were put in our place very quickly. We soon realised how big this challenge would be. We took it race by race and slowly but surely got better.

Our boat speed was our biggest let-down as we would get to the top mark in and around the top 10 but we just couldn't keep up with the top guys... The regatta as a whole was a real eye-opening and humbling experience. We learnt a lot and really had fun doing it.

Youth worlds is an amazing experience but a massive task for any sailor. My advice for anyone aiming to go to Youth Worlds is that if you are thinking of going just be prepared to learn as much as possible and train as hard as possible. Most of all enjoy your sailing because at the end of the day that is what it’s all about.

Isabella Wright:

Youth Worlds was an incredible experience and now that I'm back it feels an entire world away. The event itself was extremely tough and the competition intense. I didn't do as well as I had hoped, however I know what I did wrong and know that a few small things would wildly improve my results as some of my results showed I can do it.

Aside from the on-the-water experience the rest of the event was a whirlwind of meeting new people and new experiences. In the short two weeks I was there I have grown enormously as a person and a sailor, from dealing with lost luggage to packed competitive start lines. I have learnt a lot and my sailing has definitely improved.

The opportunity to go to Youth Worlds was incredible and one I have been working towards for a long time. I have learnt more than I can even say which I will definitely be putting to good use back here in South Africa.

Team leader Stefano Marcia:

It was a hard and tough lead up to this past Worlds, so I think we all tired and looking forward to resting, recovering and looking forward to sailing other boats in the next couple months. I believe it was a successful championship in terms of results and the level competition was high. The team walked away with respectable results. The level is high at these type of regattas as it’s the best sailors from each country all under 18 and every one of them with goals to achieve.

The Opening ceremony is always a highlight for the team as we were all amped to be there as Team South Africa and looking forward to the week of racing. Each sailor walked away with lessons they probably will never forget and I can’t answer on their behalves, but from my side I learnt that it’s still competitive and definitely becoming a very professional event where countries are investing substantial amounts of assets and resources into their youth teams, making it harder for countries like ourselves to catch up and just that little bit tougher to win medals.

Generally good sailors never want to rest on their laurels and are constantly wanting to achieve better, even if results don’t go in their favour they still try to better themselves as sailors and people.

Most of the team are in matric and I think that and applying for universities is their main priority for the next few months but sailing-wise I’m sure we will still see these guys participating at Youth Nationals.