Two Canadian sailors qualify for the Gold Fleet for the first time since 2016
Kingston, May 29, 2022 ÛÒ Canadian sailor Fillah Karim from Vancouver, BC, closed out the 2022 ILCA 7 MenÛªs World Championship as the top Canadian with a 43rd-place finish.
Throughout the competition held May 23-28 in Riviera Nayarit, MEX, Karim won race #2 and finished in the top 10 in three of the six qualification races, allowing him to start the final stage in 16th place overall. He ended the competition in 43rd position following the six additional races held in the final round.
The 43rd-place finish represents a personal best for him at the World Championship, as he improved his ranking by three places from last yearÛªs competition held in Barcelona, SPA.
“It was a super challenging regatta,Û pointed out the 24-year-old sailor from the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club. ÛÏAlthough technically this is my best Worlds result, it was overall an extremely disappointing performance. I sailed a clean qualifying series, which included winning the second race of the regatta, and I was in 16th place after six races. Once we started the Gold Fleet racing, I just couldnÛªt seem to put any good races together and the higher-caliber fleet really punished me for my weaknesses. At the end of the day, itÛªs not the result we were looking for coming here, but itÛªs another step in the process. As always, we will take the lessons learned here and come back stronger next year.”
A first since 2016
For the first time since 2016, when the event was called the Laser Standard Men’s World Championship, Canada had two sailors qualified in the Gold Fleet at this yearÛªs ILCA 7 MenÛªs World Championship. In addition to Karim, two-time Olympian Tom Ramshaw from Toronto, ON, was also part of the group and he took the 52nd spot overall.
Following the six qualification races, the top half of all sailors in the rankings are grouped in the Gold Fleet and compete against each other in the final round for an additional six races, which count towards the final rankings.
ÛÏThe regatta was really tough,Û said Ramshaw. ÛÏUnfortunately, my preparation wasnÛªt ideal in the lead-up to the regatta. IÛªve had some focus on other sailing activities lately and I would need more Laser-specific training to improve on things like boat handling and speed. I definitely feel like I can easily improve on this result.Û
Canada was represented by a total of nine sailors at the 2022 ILCA 7 MenÛªs World Championship.
Final Canadian results at the 2022 ILCA 7 MenÛªs World Championship
43. Fillah Karim (Vancouver, BC, RVYC) – Canadian Sailing Development Squad
52. Tom Ramshaw (Toronto, ON ÛÒ RCYC) – Canadian Sailing Team
70. Luke Ruitenberg (St. MargaretÛªs Bay, N.S., RNSYS) – Canadian Sailing Development Squad
71. James Juhasz (Oakville, ON, BHYC) – Canadian Sailing Development Squad
78. Forrest Wachholz (Innisfil, ON, Barrie YC) – Canadian Sailing Development Squad
81. Liam Bruce (Oakville, ON, Port Credit YC) – Canadian Sailing Development Squad
90. Ben Flower (Tobermory, ON, Tobermory YC)
94. Ryan Anderson (Halifax, N.S., RNSYS) – Canadian Sailing Development Squad
105. Norman Struthers (Toronto, ON, RCYC)
More details are available on Sail Canada website ÌÊ www.sailing.ca.
About Sail Canada
Established in 1931, Sail Canada is the national governing body for the sport of sailing in the country. Sail Canada is a leading international sailing nation, proud of its world class athletes, lifelong participants and inclusive culture. The organization and its members are committed to excellence by developing and training its leaders, athletes, sailors, instructors, coaches and officials. With the valued support from our partners, the Provincial Sailing Associations and our member clubs, schools, organizations and stakeholders, sailing is promoted in all its forms. By setting standards and delivering programs from home pond to podium for Canadians of all ages and abilities, from dinghies to keelboats, cruising to navigation, windsurfing to powerboating and accessible sailing, Sail Canada sets sail for all, sail to win and sail for life.
A sport in the Olympic program since the first Games in 1896, except in 1904, the pursuit of success in these Games is what fuels the focus of Sail Canada as Canadian athletes have so far achieved nine Olympic and five Paralympic medals.
