Although absent from the recent Laser World Championship in Cork, former world champion and multiple Olympic medallist Ben Ainslie returns to action next week in the European 1720 Championships at Pwellhi, Wales. More than 75 crews are expected, drawn almost exclusively from Ireland and Britain for the series that starts on Monday morning.
Ainslie, who has retired from the single-handed dinghy, has been drafted in to join Tom Murphy on the crew of Peugeot Motorcycles along with Olympic Tornado class sailor Hugh Stiles who recently finished second overall at his own Europeans. The pair will be helm and tactician respectively in a repeat of their 1998 appearance with the Murphy Brothers at Ford Cork Week.
Mark Rushall is the reigning champion though there is little to suggest that he will anything other than a difficult defence of his title next week. The former university champion is also an accomplished helm on the Ultra 30 circuit. His experience will prove invaluable against a strong Irish squad that has tended to dominate this class at events at home and abroad.
From Cork, the spiritual home of the class, comes a wealth of home-grown talent. Anthony O'Leary on Ford Racing was the inaugural European champion. Class supremo is current Irish champion and two times European title holder Mark Mansfield who is possibly the most prolific Irish yachtsman to emerge from this country in recent years. As usual, his steed is Union Chandlery.
Mansfield is preparing for his fourth Olympic Games in the Star keelboat with Killian Collins and is on a performance high at present. Last week's ISAF world rankings showed the Cork helm sixth overall and Mansfield is confident that this will improve further. He recently returned to Ireland with the Mumm 30 UK National title added to his scalps.
Killian Collins younger brother Mel is helming "Mammy" owned by Diarmuid Foley as Mansfield is precluded from this post by international eligibility rules. The team will be action again at the world championships in Sardinia in October.
More Olympic flavour will also be added next week by Marshall King helming Max MacMullan's On All Fours while former Irish national champion Gareth Flannigan on Red/Green is also competing. Other Dublin talent includes Adam Winkelmann's Yoke (National YC) and the Cagney and Lennon partnered Xerox from Howth.
One of Manfield's crew for next week, Peter O'Leary, rushes home to the RCYC in time for the annual ISA Junior Helmsman Championship. As current Laser class national champion, he is one of 21 young sailors nominated for the event that will this year be raced in Firefly dinghies and certain to be counted among the favourites.
Others include two brothers from different classes - Simon Mitton from the Optimist fleet and current 420 national champion Spencer Mitton. Recently crowned Mirror World champion Peter Bayly is another contender.
The other nominees are a mixture of panel and class nominations: Peter Bayly (Mirror); Conor Clancy (Laser II); Brian Reilly (GP14); Amy Byrne (420); Ross McDonald (Laser Radial); Debbie Hanna (Laser Radial); Ian Croxon (Optimist); George Kingston (Optimist); Simon Mitton (Optimist); Brian Flahive (Topper); Timothy Goodbody (Laser); Matthew McGovern (Laser); Michael O'Connor (Laser); Alex Kaiser (Mirror); Johnathan O'Dowd (Mirror); Chris Forristal (Mirror); Daire O'Reilly (420); Spencer Mitton (420); John Downey (420).
