Australian Formula Kite sailing star Breiana Whitehead has won the prestigious overall prize at the Princess Sofia Regatta against Spain in the countdown to the Olympic Games.
Whitehead, the first sailor selected for the 2024 Olympic team, won her class and also accumulated the fewest points in all 10 classes to claim the coveted overall Princess Sofia trophy.
She became the second Australian to win that award, joining Olympic 470 class gold medalists Mat Belcher and Will Ryan.
“It’s so incredible to win the whole major trophy that I’m literally speechless,” Whitehead said.
“With so many great sailors here, I’m impressed. And to join so many great sailors who have won in the past like Mat and Will in 2018, it’s incredible.”
After some delays waiting for the Palma wind on Saturday, Whitehead stormed out to win the first race of the final series.
With time running out, racing had to be suspended for the day and when her main rival, five-time world champion Daniela Moroz (USA) received an initial penalty, it was confirmed that Whitehead would take gold.
“It means I’m on the right path to the Games and I’m still working on everything that needs to be perfected to get better,” Whitehead said.
“I’m excited, it’s a good confidence boost down the road.”
It was a productive six-day regatta for the Australian sailing team, with Zoe Thompson battling to take silver in the ILCA6 class.
Western Australia’s Thomson was runner-up for the second year in a row after three of nine Australian teams qualified for the medal race.
Reigning ILCA 7 Olympic and World Champion Matt Wearn, coming off a post-world titles hiatus following his win in January, had a solid week and finished his medal race in third place to show he remains in form for the Olympic Games.
Australian team technical director Michael Blackburn said the regatta would help decide teams’ places for the Games.
“As with many countries, our team will be looking to the results from Palma to help inform the remaining selections for our Olympic team, so it was a key performance regatta for us,” he said.
“We have a relatively young team across the board, so while we are looking for medal-winning performances at the 2024 Games, we are also excited about future prospects.”
The 49er and 49er FX classes recently had world championships in Lanzarote and thanks to that Olivia Price and Evie Haseldine (49er FX) and Jim Colley and Shaun O’Connor (49er) were selected for the Olympic team.
They finished 16th and 14th respectively this week, while their compatriots demonstrated Australia’s depth.
Jack Ferguson and Max Paul reunited after a break and led the race for several days before finishing sixth, while in the 49er FX Laura Harding and Annie Wilmot were eighth.
At Nacra 17, Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown missed out on the medal race by one place, coming in 11th place.
AAP
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