ILCA 4 UK Nationals at the WPNSA - Runners & Riders
by Jane Sunderland 10 Aug 2021 16:54 BST
14-18 August 2021
ILCA 4s in Portland Harbour © Sam Pearce
The 2021 ILCA Nationals at WPNSA are nearly upon us and with almost 260 entries across the 3 fleets we can look forward the biggest National championship to be held in the UK for some considerable time.
Who is in with a chance of a top 10 place? Before we look at the runners and riders we must thank the army of volunteers that have stepped forward to make this event possible - more than 100! It couldn't happen without you - we still need help so give us a call if you'd like to be involved.
As the 2021 ILCA Nationals are closing in, we look to the ILCA 4 fleet. It looks to be an interesting contest with some old faces to follow and new faces appearing. So who will rise to the top?
It's been a funny old year with lockdowns and many weeks and months of sailing missed for these sailors, we've had 2 major events and we currently have 13 sailors battling it out at the Worlds in Dun Laoghaire in Ireland.
After Day 1 in Ireland, Arwen Fflur is leading the GBR girls in 47th and Max Steele the boys in 42nd. Max has been spending a large part of his summer in Poland and recently represented GBR in the ILCA 4 Europeans in Travemunde. He should be race fit and provide a good contest on the water. Arwen is consistently at the front of the fleet and will be one to watch.
Some young guns also showed their prowess in the first event we had post lockdown. The ULKA South Coast Anniversary Open Regatta was held in WPNSA and took place on the 9th May in shifty conditions. The top 3 sailors at this event were all U16 which is exciting for the ILCA 4 class with some fresh talent coming through. Freddie Sunderland won the event, coming straight from the Tera Class, followed by Arwen Fflur and Henry Keegan. Will there be success again for this trio?
Following the Anniversary Regatta, we had a super Grand Prix at Queen Mary with very changeable weather including massive wind shifts and chilling conditions that tested the sailors. Antonio Pascali, Noah Evans and Imogen Palmer filled the podium and we look forward to following their progress at the Nationals.
Many other sailors have been out training hard in what has been a tricky year for many.
What we do know for sure is that we will see some great sailing from this fleet, with 89 sailors on the start line it's going to make compelling watching.
The event is being supported by our great sponsors:
Sailingfast - Duncan brings his battle buss down from Scotland for most the big events, which is so ridiculously well equipped, you could replace everything on your boat. Although based in Scotland they will get anything to you super fast. He also supplied many of the prizes for the draw on Saturday evening. sailingfast.co.uk
SouthEast Sailboats - Max brings bespoke quality at affordable prices to the class. His passion for detail has made his products a must have for anyone who wants quality. He also supplied many great prizes for the event. southeastsailboats.co.uk
Ovington Boats - Chris Turner lives dinghies and has been a significance presence in the boat building world for decades. OB are now the official UK builders of ILCAs. A very smart new Ovington ILCA Dinghy was on display at the Masters event. www.ovingtonboats.com
Vaikobi - a brand born on the waters of Sydney Harbour, out of a passion for all ocean sports. Across the team, we paddle, Surfski, SUP, Wing Foil and Sail. Sailing has been a passion within the business right from the start. The senior management team at Vaikobi comprise more than fifty years of marine industry and sailing experience between them. www.vaikobi.com
Noble Marine - Ian MacManus (the man behind the name) has crafted a very competitive and excellent insurance product for all Laser/ILCA sailors. A very personal service and a extremely useful website help make this the 'go to' company. www.noblemarine.co.uk
Fernhurst Books - Jeremy Atkins has put together an incredible list of the most useful dinghy racing books. If you have books on racing you've probably got at least one Fernhurst book. fernhurstbooks.com
Follow the action on the UKLA Facebook page, www.facebook.com/UKLAILCA