Next week, a full Irish Sailing squad will race in all three Paris 2024 qualified disciplines at the French Olympic Week on the Cote D'Azur. The event will feature 824 sailors on 660 boats from 90 nations competing in ten disciplines.
The French Olympic Week is the last major competition before the Olympic Sailing regatta in Marseille, where Irish Sailing has established a team base for training and preparation.
Second selection Trial in 49er
The Irish team has already secured berths in all three contested events, and this event will be the second of three selection trials for the men's double-handed skiff (49er) event. The 'Last Chance Regatta' will also be held at the same venue and course areas as the qualified nations events, giving the remaining places for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Tokyo Olympians Robert Dickson (Howth Yacht Club) and Sean Waddilove (Skerries Sailing Club) are competing against Crosshaven's Seafra Guilfoyle with Johnny Durcan (Royal Cork Yacht Club) for the place secured in this event by the Dublin crew last Autumn.
As regular Afloat readers will recall the Dickson and Waddilove are on familiar territory in the south of France having won the 49er Under–23 Junior World title in Marseille, France in 2018.
"We are using Hyères as a full dress rehearsal for our Olympic setup as it’s an ideal learning opportunity that we are planning to make the most of," said James O'Callaghan, Irish Sailing's Performance Director. Racing will begin on Monday for the Irish sailors’ events, with the qualification round over three days before the top ten boats in each class go forward for a high-scoring medal race on the final day of the regatta.
ILCAs
Rio 2016 veteran Finn Lynch was the first to secure a place for Ireland at last Summer's combined Sailing World Championships in The Hague for the men's single-handed event (ILCA7). He won against the then independent campaigner Ewan McMahon (Howth Yacht Club), who will also be competing next week in a 75-strong fleet.
McMahon's younger sister Eve - and Irish Sailor of the Year for 2023 - also qualified Ireland for the women's single-handed event (ILCA6) at her world championships in January and, as the sole Irish contender for this event, automatically qualified to be nominated to the Olympic Federation of Ireland's squad for the Olympic Games. As Afloat reported earlier this month, the 20-year-old had the best result of the Irish Team at the Princess Sofia Regatta in Palma, finishing 14th overall out of 114 boats after a 5th place finish on her final day of racing.