Please select your home edition
Edition

Kennedy claims RYA Marlow Ropes Women's Match Racing crown

by British Keelboat Sailing 19 Sep 19:52 NZST 14-15 September 2024

The RYA Marlow Ropes Women's Match Racing Championship title was claimed by skipper Juliette Kennedy and her team over a weekend of close competition.

The annual fixture at Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy had good conditions for an action-packed two days of racing in British Keelboat Sailing's fleet of Elliott 6Ms (14-15 September 2024).

With sunshine for most of the weekend, Saturday had two round robins in a consistent 6-10 knots, followed by a cooler Sunday and 8-12 knots of breeze for a third round robin, semis and finals, with a minimum of 17 races per team.

Race Officer Eilidh Millar said: "There was lots of racing for everyone and it was a really enjoyable weekend. We had relatively short races and a good umpire team who were on the case as needed, and the results don't show just how close a lot of the racing was over the weekend - we had quite a few almost photo finishes with just half a metre or less between the boats at times."

Coaching

The event attracts both new and experienced teams and Phil Devereux - Head Coach of the British Keelboat Academy - along with the umpires, hosted a debrief after the racing on Saturday to answer questions about match racing rules and tactics.

With coaching support and the event's typically warm and welcoming ethos, teams who didn't take a race on the Saturday were able to improve and pick up wins on day two.

Round robins & finals

Juliette Kennedy, Ruby Sunderland and Amber Hale all took turns at the top of the round robin leaderboards in a hotly fought series.

Overall standings after three round robins saw Kennedy in pole position with 12 wins from 15 races, Hale in second with 10 wins and Ellen Morley in third with nine.

Morley then beat Hale 2:0 in the semi-finals; Sunderland meanwhile took a first race win from Kennedy, who then won the next two to seal her spot in the final.

The petit final also went to three matches, with Hale taking a race before Sunderland of Cowes Match Racing made a comeback with two wins to claim third overall.

In the final, Kennedy took overall victory 2:0 from Morley.

Overall Results: (top three)

1st Juliette Kennedy, Jenny Smallwood, Olivia Jacklin, Kate MacAdorey 2nd Ellen Morley, Hannah Cox, Lisanne Blok, Hazel McDonnell 3rd Ruby Sunderland, Rosie Povall, Zoe Dunn and Maeve Hall

Full results here.

Winning skipper Kennedy, who finished third in the 2023 edition, said: "I have done this event for the last few years and it's one of my favourite sailing events in the calendar. I love how friendly the teams are and how tight the races can be. Each year I have learnt more about match racing rules and strategy, and I think that experience helped us clinch the win this year! It would be great to see more women getting into match racing and hopefully lots of teams competing next year."

Take part

Next up for the #rockupandrace RYA Match Racing Championship Series 2024 is Qualifier 5 in RS21s at Queen Mary Sailing Club in London over the weekend of 28-29 September. Enter now and by 9am Friday 20 September at the latest.

The qualifiers then conclude with the Ceilidh Cup - incorporating the Scottish Student Sailing Championship - which will be sailed in Sonars at the Royal Northern & Clyde Yacht Club, 5-6 October. Read more and enter via the Ceilidh Cup preview.

The top teams from each event in the series receive an invitation to compete at the RYA National Match Racing Grand Finals, 18-20 October 2024 at Queen Mary Sailing Club.

Find out more at RYA Match Racing.

Related Articles

Aartsen & Courtois lead Bermuda Women's Match Race
The two skippers lead the eight all-female teams into today's quarter finals stage The Netherlands' Julia Aartsen and France's Pauline Courtois completed the round robin stage of the inaugural Aspen Bermuda Women's Match Racing Regatta yesterday in a joint lead, each with six wins and one loss. Posted on 31 Oct
Bermuda Gold Cup Round Robin complete
Defending champion leads race to Quarter Final Sweden's Johnie Berntsson, 2023 defending champion of the Bermuda Gold Cup and three-time winner of the event, completed the round robin stage of this year's Bermuda Gold Cup event with six wins out of seven races. Posted on 31 Oct
2024 Bermuda Gold Cup Day 1
Thrilling start to the 72nd edition of the event The 2024 Bermuda Gold Cup kicked off Monday in exhilarating 18-22 knot conditions in Hamilton Harbour, providing the ideal stage for the world's top match racing teams to master the challenging International One Design (IOD) racing boats. Posted on 30 Oct
Wickwire wins 3 of 5 Oakcliff Regattas
That's a Wrap. Canadians dominate last regatta of 2024 Gusts up to 30 welcomed competitors to an always eventful Oakcliff Halloween Invitational. The Northerly became lighter and shiftier throughout day two. Posted on 28 Oct
RYA National Match Racing Championship Grand Final
Team Absolute retain national match racing championship title A full-on weekend at London's Queen Mary Sailing Club saw skipper Ted Blowers and Team Absolute winning the RYA National Match Racing Championship Grand Finals for the second year running. Posted on 22 Oct
Bermuda Tourism Authority extends partnership
Of World Class Match Racing Events Bermuda Tourism Authority has renewed its long-standing partnership with the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club to support the 2024 Bermuda Gold Cup (for the King Edward VII Gold Cup) and the inaugural 2024 Aspen Bermuda Women's Match Race Regatta. Posted on 22 Oct
Notice of Race posted for 60th Congressional Cup
Recognized as the 'Grandfather' of modern world-class match racing The Long Beach Yacht Club today posted the Notice of Race for its milestone 60th Anniversary of The Congressional Cup, the club's flagship event, from April 30 - May 4, 2025. Posted on 20 Oct
Applications Open until 1st November
For the 2024 Women's World Match Racing Championships World Sailing and The Saudi Sailing Federation have confirmed the deadline for entries to the 2024 Women's Match Racing World Championship is 1st November. Posted on 13 Oct
Match racing clinics launched
Teams of 3 or 4 invited to learn or develop skills with coaching British Keelboat Sailing is launching a series of training weekends to support teams wanting to learn match racing or develop their skills. The initiative is designed to help both existing match racers and those wanting to give it a go for the first time. Posted on 10 Oct
Ceilidh Cup 2024 Match Racing
Close racing at the Royal Northern & Clyde YC over the weekend A team from Royal Northern & Clyde Yacht Club took victory on home waters to claim the Ceilidh Cup in the final qualifier of this year's RYA National Match Racing Series. Posted on 8 Oct