Rachael Betschart savoured a memorable experience after sealing an impressive second-place finish in the prestigious SailGP Inspire WASZP Grand Final Championship of Champions regatta on San Francisco Bay last weekend.

Having booked her place in the showpiece final after becoming the first female winner in the history of the Inspire Racing Series in last year’s Bermuda Sail Grand Prix, Betschart lined up against a stellar field of competitors from seven other countries in two days of competition, run alongside the SailGP Season 3 Grand Final.

Despite having to contend with the added distraction of sitting her International Baccalaureate exams during the event, the 17-year-old Warwick Academy student again showcased burgeoning talent, finishing runner-up in the female division with 172 points, just 19 adrift of New Zealand’s Stella Bilger, with Norway’s Hedvig Doksrod rounding out the top three.

As well as taking immense pride in her performance, Betschart reflected on the invaluable opportunity to experience being part of such a high-profile event, which also featured compatriot Ethan Thompson in the male division, in which he finished eighth overall.

“It was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had,” said Betschart, who started sailing at the age of five and is a product of the Bermuda Optimist Dinghy Association under the guidance of Pablo Weber.

She is now coached by Nathan Bailey and Josh Greenslade out of the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club.

“Everybody competing were at such a high level having raced in multiple WASZP regattas and so I’m just really proud to have finished second, it was really exciting.

“My hopes going into the races were to try to finish in the top half. I was a little bit nervous at the beginning but after the first day I performed really well, found myself in contention for first place and from there my expectations raised.

“I gave it my all and, although I didn’t win, looking at the bigger picture it was such an amazing experience and opportunity to learn.”

Despite agonisingly missing out on the prize of joining one of the SailGP Teams in Season 4, having the opportunity share the same waters as the foiling F50 catamarans and rubbing shoulders with some of the sport’s biggest names, was enough to cement Betschart’s ultimate aspirations of a professional career in sailing.

While she is planning on undertaking a gap year after leaving Warwick Academy, the aspiring sailor has already set her sights on earning a place on SailGP’s Inspire Careers programme, which offers students and young professionals the chance to gain both onshore and offshore experience.

“Having seen all of the big teams and being part of the season final was amazing,” added Betschart, who highlighted SailGP’s women’s pathway initiative as an added inspiration to fulfil her dream.

“I definitely want to try and be a part of the WASZP Grand Final event again and also be able to get on to the careers programme, which would be amazing.

“SailGP are trying to help boost the number of female sailors and there is a clear process and pathway for more females to get on the boats, which is definitely inspiring.

“It is also great that the careers programme offers different types of pathways in sailing which is important because there are loads of different areas to be involved.

“I don’t think a lot of people realise how much work goes into SailGP and not just onshore, it’s a huge project off shore as well with the building of the boats and data analysis.

“After a gap year, I’m hoping to study engineering at university and so maybe I can combine that with sailing in the future. Whatever happens, there is definitely no way I’ll be giving up sailing.”