Durban youth vie for Youth Worlds Team positions
Four sailors are preparing to take on South Africa’s best Hobie sailors in the hopes of qualifying for the ISAF Youth Worlds taking place in December this year.
FOUR Durban youngsters will compete in the Youth World Selections in Durban from 29 June to 2 July to bag a spot in the team that will compete in the International Sailing Federation’s Youth Worlds in December in Auckland.
Durban North’s Dylan Albert joins forces with Cowies Hill’s James Butler while Glenwood’s Jethro Brophy-Tintinger teams up with Westville’s Sarah-Ann Hall. These two local teams vying for a berth in the Hobie 16 with spinnaker class. There are six teams travelling from around South Africa, that will be taking to the waters offshore of Durban to compete for the one spot in the Catamaran class.
Dylan, a Grade 10 pupil from uMhlanga College and James, a Grade 9 pupil from Westville Boys’ High School have a number of hours experience sailing together in the double-handed classes. They notched up a second place in last year’s SAS Youth Nationals sailing on a Hobie 16 with Spinnaker.
Glenwood Boys’ High School’s Jethro and St Mary’s DGS’s Sarah-Ann are both extremely accomplished sailors in their own rights and will join forces for the first time for this event.
The seven-day regatta in Auckland is expected to attract more than 400 sailors from up to 70 nations. South African Sailing plans on sending four classes across to fly the SA flag with teams participating in the laser, Mulithull, 29er and 420 classes.
Last year, Durban’s Benji Daniel and Chad Stevenson were the sole KZN representatives in the South African team who competed in Langkawi, Malaysia at the ISAF Youth Worlds and the duo have already made the team representing the 29er class. This year, with such a strong Hobie catamaran fraternity, hopes lie on one of the two Hobie teams competing to succeed and join Daniel and Stevenson in Auckland at the end of the year.
Four of Point Yacht Club’s youth sailors are hoping to make their dreams come true, and head to Auckland in New Zealand in the green and gold colours to compete in this year’s ISAF Youth World Championships in December.
