Sebastian Kempe continued his sparkling form on the international stage at the ILCA Under-21 World Championships in Vilamoura, Portugal.

The Bermudian placed third in the under-19 age group and fifth among the overall 158 -strong men’s ILCA 7 class at the regatta, hosted by the Capable Planet Clube Nautico. The week-long regatta ended on Sunday

Kempe posted four top-ten finishes with a best of second during the championships, which saw four of the six-race final series postponed because of lack of wind.

“On most days it was so light that they abandoned the day without racing,” Kempe told The Royal Gazette.

“We went into the event underweight for the ILCA 7 class, which can be seen as a disadvantage. However, I was keen to learn as much as I could about the new class of boat.”

Despite of these setbacks Kempe was still satisfied with his overall display.

“I am happy with the result as it was a tough week of learning about how to make the new rig go fast,” he added. “The result of fifth is a good achievement for me as I’m only 17 in an under-21 event.”

German Ole Schweckendiek won the overall and under-19 titles while Portugal’s José Mendes and Germany’s Julian Hoffmann finished second and third overall.

France’s Lorenzo Mayer finished fourth overall and second in the under-19 age group.

Kempe has enjoyed considerable success on the international stage this year having placed second in the male dinghy one-person class at the Youth Sailing World Championships in The Hague, Netherlands, in July.

That followed on the heels of victories in the men’s ILCA 6 class at the Royal Yachting Association Youth National Championships in Pwllheli, Wales, in June and in Plas Heli, North Wales, in April.

Moving forward, the 17-year-old intends to rely on the experience he gained in Portugal in the ILCA 7 class to aid in his bid for 2024 Olympic Games qualification.

“Looking forward I will use this event to benchmark my training this winter in preparation for hopefully a chance to qualify Bermuda for the Olympics in the summer next year,” Kempe said.

The next Olympic Games will be held in Paris, France, from July 26 to August 11, with the sailing regatta taking place on the waters of Marseilles Marina.