Podiums aplenty on final day of Sail Brisbane
The final day of Sail Brisbane 2024 saw 15 podiums decided on a light day in Manly Harbour, with sailors pushing until the very last race in an effort to finish the regatta on a high.
More than 260 sailors took to the waters off Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron over the course of the five-day event that saw the next generation of Australia’s top sailors go up against Paris Olympians and Australian Sailing Pathways Team (ASPT) athletes.
After racing in Marseille just months ago, Nacra 17 pair Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown (Wangi Amateur Sailing Club) proved they’re Australia’s leading combination, winning each of their eight races and securing the overall title.
“We thought we were going to be a bit delayed on shore this morning, but they got us out straight away, so we managed to finish four clean races, making it eight for the series,” said Liddell.
“This was our first regatta back in Australia since the Olympics, so it was nice to be back racing on home waters. It was a nice way to finish the year,” he said.
Brown agreed, stating, “It was really quite nice racing, three-lappers for us Nacra 17s, so it was getting a bit tough on the crews, but it was lovely wind.”
Competition in the Optimist Open Fleet was tight throughout their two days on the water. Walter Heeley (Woollahra Sailing Club) finished on top of the podium in the boys fleet while clubmate Emerald Jacobsen finished first girl.
“I like sailing because it’s really fun, and you make good memories with your friends, and I’m really happy that I won because I travelled a long way to be here; I’m just really grateful,” said Jacobsen.
“I really enjoyed Sail Brisbane because it was a new experience for me, and I got to sail against lots of people I don’t normally. I got to meet new people and make new friends too.
“I think the highest it got to today was about 9 knots, so it was a bit tough because I prefer stronger winds, but it’s ok because I still was able to get some good results.
“I’m really happy with how I sailed; I had a lot of fun,” she said.
In the ILCA 6 class, ASPT athlete Elyse Ainsworth (Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club) capped off her 2024 season with a gold medal.
“We had a pretty long day out there today; we tried for four races but only got three as it was a bit of a mixed bag conditions-wise, but we were still very glad to be sailing,” said Ainsworth.
“The Australian ILCA fleet is really growing, and our skill level is rising, so it was really positive to see a healthy fleet out on the water this week.
“I’ve still got things to work on and improve on, but I’m grateful to finish the year on a high,” she said.
Pia Christin Conradi (Germany) claimed silver while Anja Von Allmen (Switzerland) secured bronze.
Fellow ASPT athlete Zac Littlewood (Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club) finished atop the podium in the ILCA 7 class, with second place awarded to Stefan Elliott-Shircore (Fremantle Sailing Club) after countback to separate him from Michael Compton (South of Perth Yacht Club) in third.
“The regatta was heavily influenced by the current and the geographical factors, and the wind was coming from different directions every day,” said Littlewood.
“It was all about what decisions you made, where you went, and how well you executed, and it was really good to be tested here in regatta format ahead of our Nationals coming up in a couple of weeks.”
Sail Brisbane ran from 17-21 December at the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron.
To find out more or view results, click here.
