December 9, 2019 – Kingston, ON
The 2019 Hyundai 49er, 49er FX and Nacra 17 World Championships wrapped up with the final fleet races and medal races being held on Sunday. The regatta challenged the Canadian sailors with tough conditions and tougher competition.
In the 49er FX fleet, the team of Ali Ten Hove and Mariah Millen (ON) posted some strong results throughout the regatta, with multiple finishes in the top 10 against some very stiff competition. As an added bonus, thanks to their excellent sailing at the PanAm games in Lima and a strong finish from the American FX team at the Worlds, Canada has secured a continental berth for the 2020 Olympics in Japan.
In the Nacra 17 fleet, Allie Surette and Max Flinn (NS) showed better and better results as the regatta went on, including a top 5 finish in silver fleet on the last day. You can watch them win one of their starts here.
All of the Canadian athletes competing in New Zealand showed their ability to battle hard and continue to compete through challenging conditions and circumstances. High Performance Director, Mike Milner, had this to say “Sail Canada is very happy to see the increased activity and performances from our 49er and 49erFX teams as both classes have now qualified for the Tokyo Games. As the Olympic trials now commence for these teams at the 2020 World Championships and the 2020 Princess Sofia Regatta we will continue to support their efforts and hope our Canadian sailing community rallies behind these deserving sailors.”
Next up for the Canadian skiff sailors is the 2020 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 World Championships to be held in Geelong, Australia on February 10-15. As the clock ticks down to the Olympics, the competition will continue to be fierce as our sailors head into the final stretch to determine who will represent Canada in 2020.
Canadian Results
Ali ten Hove & Mariah Millen (49er FX) – 36th
Allie Surrette & Max Flinn (Nacra 17) – 39th
Alexander Heinzemann & Justin Barnes (49er) – 60th
William Jones & Evan Depaul (49er) – 61st
