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Sebastian Kempe and Nicole Stovell excel at Youth National Championships

Bermudian sailors Nicole Stovell, left, and Sebastian Kempe, centre, claimed victory in their respective ILCA6 class at the RYA Youth National Championships, held in Pwllheli, Wales (Photograph courtesy of Royal Hospital School)
Sebastian Kempe, who claimed victory in the ILCA6 class at the RYA Youth National Championships, held in Pwllheli, Wales (Photograph by Charlotte Bond)

Sebastian Kempe and Nicole Stovell sealed glory at the Royal Yachting Association Youth National Championships.

Competing at the championships in Pwllheli, Wales, the two Bermudian sailors claimed victory in their respective male and female divisions in the ILCA6 class.

Kempe, already a youth world champion, showed his superior class with eight wins out of the 13-race series to lap the field. He ended with only 14 points with two Britons, Thommie Grit and Will Pank, second and third on 43 and 63 points respectively.

“After the first race I was in second place. That race didn't really go the way I had planned,” said Kempe, who is targeting a spot at the Olympic Games in Paris in two years’ time. “After that, I won five races in a row.

“It doesn’t matter where you were in the last race. What matters is that you come back and perform at your best and hit that reset button.”

Stovell, who joined Kempe at the Royal Hospital School in Ipswich, England, in January, was also delighted to come out on top of her class.

“It went really well for me,” she said. “My competitors were very focused so at times it was really challenging.

“I had to stay very consistent, consolidate and work really hard to keep ahead. I tried my best, had fun and kept the gap I needed to place first.”

Stovell won three of her 13 races and such was her consistency that her two discarded finishes were a fifth and sixth place.

She ended on 31 points with Britain’s Honor Proctor, who also won three, in second place on 34, while Ellen Barbour, of Ireland, was third on 40 despite winning five races.

Kempe and Stovell are due to represent Bermuda at the Youth World Championships in The Hague, Netherlands, from July 8 to 15.

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Published June 22, 2022 at 7:55 am (Updated June 22, 2022 at 10:07 am)

Sebastian Kempe and Nicole Stovell excel at Youth National Championships

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