Two members of the South of Perth Yacht Club’s sailing team, Axel Fleet and Jamie Randall, recently participated in the Sail Melbourne regatta held from January 14 to 18, 2023 at the Royal Brighton Yacht Club in the 470 Olympic Sailing class.
The regatta provided challenging conditions, ranging from 36C days with 15 knots of breeze to 2-meter swells and heavy rains.
The Sail Melbourne regatta is known as a “check point” for Australian Sailing Team Olympic class sailors, according to Iain Brambell, Australian Sailing’s High-Performance Director.
It offers an opportunity for sailors to test their skills and strategies against Olympic athletes and more experienced peers before heading to Europe for the regatta season.
For those who have not attended a training day at SoPYC, it is worth knowing that both Axel and Jamie are coaches for the junior training fleets in the Optimist and Open Skiff classes. The two young sailors have also come from successful 29er teams and recently joined forces to continue their racing development with the aim of campaigning for opportunities in the 470 class.
Axel and Jamie’s participation in the Sail Melbourne regatta was a great success, as they finished 5th overall and 1st in their age category. This is an excellent start for their future regattas in the 470 class.
Their participation in this prestigious event is a testament to the high level of training and dedication provided by the SoPYC, and it is a promising sign for the future of sailing in Western Australia.
