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Eleven new teams took their next big step towards future double-handed international success when Yachting New Zealand’s 420 youth development programme kicked off in earnest last weekend.
The camp at Auckland’s Royal Akarana Yacht Club brought together a mix of all-girl, all-boy and mixed crews for two days of on- and off-water sessions, led by 2004 470 Olympian and top coach Andrew Brown.
Youth programme manager Sam Mackay said the programme, designed in collaboration with the New Zealand 420 class association, is aimed at boosting the domestic fleet.
"The 420 has always been an awesome boat for young sailors to develop the teamwork, communication and technical skills that are relevant to any boat you go on to sail," Mackay said. "For us, this programme is about providing a really solid foundation for sailors as they transition from their junior classes and step up into youth classes."
The weekend was far from easy, with Saturday's junior winter sprints at Kohimarama Yacht Club sailed in winds gusting close to 30 knots. "It was a bit of a baptism of fire," Mackay admitted. "Coach Brownie did an awesome job though with some theory and demonstrations on shore to set the group up really well before they went out."
Sailors came from as far afield as Tauranga and New Plymouth to attend the clinic, with Zofia Wells and Charlotte Handley one of the teams signing up. The young Auckland pair won the female title and placed second overall at the RS Feva world championships in France earlier this month.
Yachting New Zealand 420 programme lead Jenny Armstrong said she was thrilled by the turnout and the wider momentum around the class.
"The domestic 420 fleet has been relatively small for a few years, but to have 11 boats in Auckland and another 12 training at Evans Bay on the same weekend shows the appetite is back," she said. "It's fantastic to see so many young sailors and parents committing to this pathway."
The programme is structured in two phases. "This first block runs across August and September, building the foundations ahead of the youth national championships later this year," Armstrong said.
The 420 squad has been invited to train alongside the national youth squad at Manly Sailing Club this weekend, the venue for the national youth trials late next month.
"The second phase of the programme will take things to the next level, preparing a squad for the 2026 420 world championships with targeted coaching and regatta support. The 420 remains a proven stepping stone - developing skills that will transfer directly to Olympic classes like the 49er, 49erFX and 470."
Mackay agreed the long-term vision is key.
"We’ve already seen what Kiwi sailors can achieve in the 420 class, with world and youth worlds medals over the years. This programme will hopefully kick off the next group that will follow in their footsteps," he said.
Alongside Wells and Handley, the new programme also features Jeffrey Chenglin Du and Eoghan Harris, Lauren Arnold and Julia Nguyen, Flora Stevens and Sasha White, Philippa Wiltshire and Lauchy Wills, Amélie Staunstrup Moore and Reija Treacy Wolnik, Nate Soper and Hamish Brown, Amber Hughes and Phoebe Willis, Isaac Wilson and Micah Bollen, Thomas Linklater and Harry Strang, and mixed team Izzy Harrison and Thomas Burrowes.
