Bermudian sailor Rockal Evansfinished in on the podium at the International 5.5m Australia Championships.

As part of the crew of Black Magic, led by Mark Tolhurst, the team impressed in two competitive categories of the prestigious regatta, hosted by the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club, in Newport, New South Wales.

The first came in the fiercely contested scratch series over seven gruelling races, in which the team claimed third overall, finishing the series tied on 18 points with John Bacon's Ku-Ring-Gai but narrowly missing out on the second spot.

The championship title was won by Thomas Spithill and his crew on Rhapsody, who dominated throughout to end on nine points.

However, not content with a highly encouraging podium placing in the scratch series, Evans and the team excelled further in the SailSys PHS Class, claiming top spot with a total of 18.5 points.

Gerard Smith's Skagerak settled for second place in the overall standings with 19 points, with Damian Macey's Baragoola in third on 22 points.