TRIALS TO BE HELD FOR THIS YEAR'S YOUTH WORLDS

May 2017

The 2017 Yachting New Zealand youth trials will be held at the Manly Sailing Club in October to help select the NZL Sailing Foundation Youth Team to contest December's Youth Sailing World Championships in Sanya, China.

This is a change from the original plan, which had been put in place under the assumption the youth worlds would be in Israel in July. The winners from February's inaugural NZL Sailing Regatta were going to be nominated for selection but this was deemed too far in advance of the revised date for the youth worlds, especially as a lot can change in a short space of time in youth sailing with the size and skill level of young sailors.

As the premier event in youth sailing, more than 400 sailors from over 60 nations are expected to compete on the waters off Hainan Island from December 9-16.

Torbay hosted last year's edition, with New Zealand collecting one medal to sisters Kate and Greta Stewart in the girls' 29er.

Trials will be held at the Manly Sailing Club on October 11-15 in all nine youth classes: RS:X, 420, 29er, Laser Radial and Nacra 15. Athletes who win their classes will be nominated for selection but will still have to prove they are capable of good results at the youth worlds - New Zealand competed in eight of the nine events last year.

It means trials will be held in the Nacra 15. Originally it was planned that the second-place getters in the 29er would be nominated for the Nacra 15 but the date of the trials is too close to the youth worlds, giving nominees little time to become proficient in such a technical boat as the Nacra 15, let alone win medals.

This year's Youth Sailing World Championships will be the last for open crews, with following regattas switching to mixed crews. Yachting New Zealand will, however, opt for a mixed crew if one is selected because the next youth trials will be only six weeks after the Sanya regatta and it's also in line with the pathway to the Nacra 17, which is a mixed Olympic class.

Nacra 15s are available for purchase through the Nacra dealer here.

There will be a different look to the New Zealand team selected for the Youth Sailing World Championships, irrespective of results at the trials, with some of last year's crop now too old or having moved into Olympic classes.

For more on the full selection regulations for the 2017 NZL Sailing Foundation Youth Team, see here.