Two Providence Team IRL crews will compete in the 49er World
Championships from November 17-22 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Ireland’s
49erFX team of Andrea Brewster and Saskia Tidey will compete in the main
event of the year in the 49er calendar, as will Ireland’s 49er team of
Matt McGovern and Ryan Seaton.
The World Championships are a qualifier event for the Olympics in Rio
next year, and sailors Andrea Brewster & Saskia Tidey are vying for
a place in the games next summer. There are three places up for grabs
and Team Brewster-Tidey may qualify the Nation for the Games with a
strong showing.
SA Performance Director, James O’Callaghan gives us his November preview
On the laser front, the best female laser radial sailors in the world
including Ireland’s Annalise Murphy will be sharpening their skills and
tactics ahead of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games when the 2015 Laser Radial
Women’s World Championships get underway in Mussanah, Oman, later this
month.
This event is the second last Laser Radial World Championships before
Olympic sailing starts on 15 August 2016, and the final qualifying
event of the cycle, the 100 top Laser Radial sailors including London
2012 gold medallist Lijia Xu from China and Evi Van Acker from Belgium
who is ranked world number one, will be arriving at Al Mussanah Sports
City determined to leave their mark on this fiercely competitive fleet.
In total, 100 sailors representing 50 nations will attend the 2015 Laser
Radial Women’s World Championships. A further 39 coaches will be in
attendance alongside other back up staff members of the national squads
and Laser class officials.
Irish Paralympic Sailors, John Twomey, Ian Costelloe and Austin
O’Carroll set off for Melbourne, Australia to compete in the 2015 Para
Worlds Sailing Championships for a place on the start line in Rio next
year. The final qualifying event takes place in Melbourne Australia from
November 28th to the 3rd of December 2015.
The team compete in the 23 foot Sonar Class, which for Paralympic
events is a two sails keelboat. The Irish team came 3rd in the ISAF
sailing world-cup in Weymouth June 2015 and are currently ranked 5th in
the world.
The Irish team will spend nearly four weeks in Australia as part of
the qualifying preparation for the RIO 2016 Paralympic Games. The 2015
Para World Sailing Championships hosted by the Royal Yacht Club of
Victoria will take place in Williamstown, Victoria, Australia. This
event is the final qualifier for the RIO 2016 Paralympic Games.
John Twomey, from Ballinhassig Co. Cork, has been sailing since 1979,
having competed in 10 Paralympic Games. Winning a Gold medal in Seoul
1988 and Bronze medal in Great Britain 1984 while throwing the discus
and he has competed in the Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and
London 2012 Paralympics in sailing. If he successfully qualifies for Rio
2016 this will be his 11th Paralympic Games.