Seb Menzies and George Lee Rush travel to Eckernförde, Germany, next week for the 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 European Championships, their first competitive outing since being crowned 49er world champions in France in May.
The pair, both 21, arrive as defending European champions, having taken the title in Thessaloniki last year by a 35-point margin and with a day to spare. The Thessaloniki victory was their breakthrough major title in the class, though it was swiftly eclipsed by what unfolded at Quiberon. Their world championship came down to the closing metres of the medal race, when a penalty sent Menzies and Lee Rush back to the start line, forcing them to fight back from near the rear of the fleet before ultimately prevailing. The result made them winners of the two biggest regattas in the class since last June and the youngest 49er world champions in history. Eckernförde marks their return to international competition since Quiberon and the first time they will defend a European title as reigning world champions.
The regatta runs from 7 to 12 July and has drawn 194 boats and 388 sailors from more than 35 countries, a substantial increase on the 118 boats and 236 sailors who competed in Thessaloniki last year. The entry list brings together the established European nations alongside a broad spread of international representation, including the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Oman and South Africa.
New Zealand's challenge at the event reaches well beyond its defending world champions. Brothers Sean and Rowan Kensington are entered in the 49er fleet alongside Mattias Coutts and Oscar Gunn, and Francesco Kayrouz and Hamish McLaren. Nicola and Rebecca Hume will sail in the 49erFX, while Micah Wilkinson and Kate Stewart are entered in the Nacra 17.
Coutts and Gunn carry solid momentum into the week, having placed fourth at Kiel Week last week in a quality fleet. They were also the only other Kiwi crew to reach the gold fleet at the world championships, finishing 20th overall in Quiberon. Kayrouz and McLaren, former junior world championship silver medallists, also competed at the worlds, gaining experience in the silver fleet.
Wilkinson and Stewart, a new pairing in the mixed multihull class, made an immediate impression at Kiel, finishing 11th overall with five top-10 results that included a race win. The Hume sisters showed encouraging progress at the 49erFX World Championships, climbing steadily through the standings across the second half of the regatta to finish 35th in a fleet of more than 50 boats.
At Kiel Week, Switzerland's Joshua Richner and Nilo Schärer claimed the 49er title, Canada's Georgia and Antonia Lewin-Lafrance backed up their European crown from last year with another commanding performance in the 49erFX, and Great Britain's John Gimson and Anna Burnet were equally authoritative in the Nacra 17, leading their fleet from start to finish as the defending European champions.
All three Kiel Week winners are entered at Eckernförde, with Lewin-Lafrance and Gimson and Burnet arriving as both reigning European champions in their respective classes and the form crews to beat.
