NIA JERWOOD/MONIQUE DE VRIES WIN GOLD FOR AUSTRALIA AT 2017 420 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, LADIES DIVISION

Australia’s top two crews in the Ladies division were separated by a mere three points prior to the last day. Leaders Nia Jerwood and Monique de Vries scored a win in the first race of the last day, but Victorians Laura Harding and Ellie Grimshaw were second, keeping the pressure on. The leaders started poorly in the final race and found themselves battling for a top ten spot while the Victorians were third in the middle stages of the race. Victorians Sophie Jackson and Laura Thomson bolted away from the field to score their first win of the series. The Brazilian crew put in their best performance with a second place and Harding and Grimshaw were fourth. All eyes were now on Jerwood and de Vries, who were dicing with Spain’s Maria and Pilar Caba for seventh place. In a spirited charge for the line the Australians defended their position well to score a seventh place, which earned them a tie with the Victorians and victory on a countback. The subdued return of boats to shore was a good indication of the uncertainty that surrounded their final position.

Monique expressed her thanks to WAIS coach Belinda Stowell-Brett, giving her credit for their preparation for the regatta. “It was a pretty tough regatta actually,” she admitted afterwards. “The girls who finished second sailed really well all week and really put it to us in the last race.”

Nia chipped in, “The thing we had to work on was our speed. We’re used to sailing the 470 which is pretty quick upwind, but we think we’ve improved our downwind a lot, especially during the week.”

420 Ladies - Final Top 10
1. Nia JERWOOD/Monique DE VRIES (AUS 54798) - 25 pts
2. Laura HARDING/Eleanor GRIMSHAW (AUS 55158) - 25 pts
3. Arianna PASSAMONTI/Giulia FAVA (ITA 56047) - 69 pts
4. Sophie MCINTOSH/Orla MULHOLLAND-PATTERSON (AUS 53663) - 71 pts
5. Isabel DAVIES/Gemma KEERS (GBR 55517) - 73 pts
6. Sophie JACKSON/Laura THOMSON (AUS 55166) - 78 pts
7. María CABA/Pilar CABA (ESP 56246) - 87 pts
8. Solène MARIANI/Maude SCHMID (SUI 56274) - 93 pts
9. Clara OLIVE/Solenza MARIANI (FRA 56376) - 95 pts
10. Olívia BELDA/Elisa VON FRITSCH (BRA 54642) - 100 pts

Full Results
Source: 420 Sailing