Northern Ireland Sailing Team dominate the RS Feva Irish Nationals

Northern Ireland Sailing Team sailors lead the way at the RS Feva Irish National Championships which were held at Greystones Sailing Club on 9 and 10 August.

Emily and Annabel Ridout, Jesicca Dadley-Young and Sally Nixon, and Ellie Nolan and Niamh Conan were all in action in a breezy event.

All of the sailors finished in the top 10, with Emily and Annabel Ridout winning the overall title.

• Emily and Annabel Ridout- 1^st females (1^st overall)
• Jesicca Dadley-Young and Sally Nixon- 2^nd females (4^th overall)
• and Ellie Nolan and Niamh Conan- 3^rd females (10^th overall)

Full results can be seen by clicking here. 

Emily and Annabel Ridout put together a very consistent series and counted no results outside of the top 3. The Ridout sisters are now back-to-back Irish Nationals Champions and have had a fantastic season which included a recent 10^th overall finish at the RS Feva World Championships. 

Jesicca Dadley-Young and Sally Nixon showed they were on top form throughout the weekend. In 5/7 of the races they sailed, they finished in the top 3, however two BFD results negatively impacted their overall position.

Similarly, Ellie Nolan and Niamh Coman had been putting together a consistent series of results with a 6^th, 7^th, 8^th and 10^th in the first four races, but a UFD and two BFD results in the final three races put a stop to any hopes of a top 5 finish.

These results come following an extended period where RYA Northern Ireland have been promoting double-handed classes as part of the Reimagined Pathways section of the five-year strategy, Navigating the future.

Not only was 2024/25 the first year that there has been an RS Feva Squad in Northern Ireland, but RYA Northern Ireland have organised a number of transition days to allow young sailors to try different double-handed boats. To read more about RYA Northern Ireland’s plans for double-handed sailing across the country, click here.

The RS Feva class is one of the classes which will compete at the John Minnis Youth Championships on 13 and 14 September at Ballyholme Yacht Club.

The John Minnis Youth Championships is Northern Ireland’s largest annual multi-class sailing competition and promises to be a fantastic event. Early bird entry for this competition closes on the 22^nd of August, so click here to get your entry in now.