NZL Youth Sailing: Girls 420 third overall after Day 2 of the 2025 Youth Worlds in Vilamoura
by Yachting New Zealand 17 Dec 2025 17:24 NZDT
Tessa Clinton and Amelia Higson (NZL) - Girls 420 - Day 2 - Youth Sailing Championships - December 16, 2025 - Vilamoura © Prow Media/World Sailing
Tessa Clinton and Amelia Higson have started their campaign at the 2025 World Sailing Youth World Championships in the podium places, securing back-to-back fourth places in their first races of the regatta.
The New Zealand girls sit third overall in the female 420 fleet after racing finally got underway in Vilamoura, Portugal, with no racing possible for the class on a light-wind opening day. Their composed performance in testing conditions has set the tone for the 13-strong NZL Sailing Foundation team as the championship begins to take shape.
Conditions swung dramatically on Day 2, with sailors battling wind speeds of up to 22 knots on the Algarve coast.
The female 420 is led by French pair Emy Combet and Juliette Peyre, who won both opening races, with Great Britain’s Sabine Potter and Merle Nieuwland second.
Elsewhere in the Kiwi team, Chloe Turner produced a standout performance in the women’s ILCA 6, finishing second in the final qualifying race of the day to move up to eighth overall. Her result came in one of the most dramatic races of the regatta so far, as gusty conditions caused widespread capsizes across the fleet.
The iQFOiL windsurfers finally began their championships. In the boys’ fleet, Ben Rist sits 20th after the opening three races, while Daniella Wooldridge is 15th in the girls’ standings as the sailors adjusted to the demanding foiling conditions.
Several Kiwi crews were left frustrated again as the weather intervened. The boys’ 420 fleet was unable to complete any races, leaving Cam Brown and Oli Stone in 10th overall based on their single race from day one. No racing was possible in the boys’ 29er, with Will Leech and Will Mason still ninth overall, or in the boys' kitefoil where New Zealand is represented by Toby Wigglesworth.
In the boys’ ILCA 6, Tom Pilkington dropped to 25th after three races, while in the female 29er Jess Handley and Bella Jenkins were unable to finish their only race as just seven of the 22 crews managed to complete the course in swirling winds.
Latest results and standings worldsailingywc.org/results