U.S. brings home three bronze medals at 2024 Youth Sailing World Championships in Lake Garda, Italy
by US Sailing 23 Jul 2024 09:59 NZST
US Sailing Team at 2024 Youth Sailing World Championships © Martina Orsini
After five days of intense racing on Lake Garda, Italy, the United States concluded the regatta with three podium finishes and six top five finishes at the 2024 Youth Sailing World Championships.
Overall, the US Youth Team achieved all top 20 finishes across nine disciplines in one of the most competitive youth regattas in the world that featured 70+ countries and 400+ athletes. Additionally, the United States finished as the 5th place country in the Nations Trophy, honoring the top countries with the most highly ranked competitors across every discipline.
Final Results:
- 3rd - Molly Bonham & Annie Sitzmann, Female Skiff / 29er
- 3rd - Isabella Mendoza Cabezas, Female One Person Dinghy / ILCA 6
- 3rd - Makani Andrews, Male Windsurfer / iQFOiL Youth
- 4th - Ava McAliley & Michelle Kaneti, Female Two Person Dinghy / i420
- 4th - Freddie Parkin & Estella Morris, Male/Mixed Two Person Dinghy / i420
- 5th - Dylan Tomko & Casey Small, Mixed Two Person Multihull / Nacra 15
- 6th - Fynn & Pierce Olsen, Male/Mixed Skiff / 29er
- 16th - Jake Homberger, Male One Person Dinghy / ILCA 6
- 17th - Sage Andrews, Female Windsurfer / iQFOiL Youth
Makani Andrews earned a bronze medal with 77 points across 17 races in the physically demanding iQFOiL class.
"One thing I did this week that gave me an edge on my competition was keeping my body well rested and energized," Andrews reflected. "This helped with the consistency in my results. Ever since I started in the iQFOiL class, the thought of becoming a medalist one day inspired me to work harder and harder throughout my training."
Female 29er pair, Annie Sitzmann and Molly Bonham placed 3rd, edging out the 4th place Argentinian team by only 5 points, totaling 92 points over 13 races.
"Winning a medal feels really rewarding after all of our preparation for this event and over the past year," said Bonham. "We made sure to keep things really light all week and kept a really positive attitude. We never let ourselves get overly frustrated and kept remembering to have a good time." Bonham shared insights into their training methods, "We have been training for this event with as many days on the water we can - either with other boats to line up with or just by ourselves focusing on speed and maneuvers."
In the ILCA 6 class, Isabella Mendoza Cabezas inched ahead of Delfina Kuttel of Argentina in a tiebreaker to earn herself a podium spot and bronze medal with a total of 81 points over 9 races.
"I feel euphoric! I worked hard for this and earned it so I'm in my place and feel at home," Cabezas shared. "The theme of this week was focusing on the basics. Improving small things led to good consistent results that I could rely on throughout the regatta. My coach, Sophia Reineke, helped me stay calm when things went good and badly." Next week, Cabezas heads to Ballyhome, Ireland for the Youth Europeans. Looking ahead at her plan for continued success, "Staying consistent on the water and visualizing defeat and success was a big thing during training season. I'd say the biggest one is learning from your mistakes as well as pushing past your mental and physical limits," she said.
US Sailing Coaches worked closely with the athletes in each class, providing support, expertise, and experience to this young and talented team. Training camps in the lead up to the Youth Worlds regatta helped the athletes and coaches prepare for this peak event. The US Sailing Coaches were:
- Phil Muller (iQFOiL, Team Leader)
- Sophia Reineke (ILCA 6)
- Paris Henken (29er)
- Steve Keen (i420)
- Rosie Chapman (Nacra 15)
"I'm so proud of this team and this coaching staff" said Phil Muller, Team Leader and US Sailing Youth Performance Manager. "These athletes conducted themselves so professionally. We owe a lot of credit to the regional club programs, teammates and coaches at home that have supported the growth of our team representing the USA this week. The consistency of our performance shows the depth of talent in the United States. We are excited for the future!"
The Youth Sailing World Championships is an annual event that unites the best youth sailors from around the world in international boat classes. Participation in the Youth Worlds, which requires qualification, is one of the final steps to prepare youth for transitions to full size Olympic equipment and international competition. Like the Olympics, each country can only send one boat/board representative per class. Selection procedures can be found here.
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