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There was a freshness to the sailing at this year's Anchor Aims Games both on and off the water and one of the offshoots was the recognition the Tauranga Yacht & Power Boat Club received for their efforts environmentally.
The club were recently awarded silver level clean regatta certification for the regatta they hosted earlier this month.
The Sailors for the Sea certification is the world's only sustainability certification for water-based activities and Tauranga needed to meet at least 13 of the 25 best practices outlined to achieve silver status. These include things like recycling, dinnerware, water bottle reduction and paperless management.
"The club did an amazing job," said Yachting New Zealand head youth coach Matt Thomas who attended the event for the final two days of racing. "The thing they did best was to make it really, really easy to be environmentally friendly and act in a responsible manner.
"It's the way our sport needs to go and if the behaviours of our young sailors improve then I'm sure it will help us all and change the way we treat our oceans in the future."
The sailors battled the elements during the Aims Games, which is not uncommon for the event, but Thomas said there was an incredible atmosphere during the three days of racing.
It was the first time it featured the O'pen Skiff (formerly O'pen Bic) alongside the Optimist, which added a new dimension to the regatta.
Ted Houry (Springbank School), who finished second in the under-13 at this year's O'pen Bic world championships, dominated the racing in the 35-boat fleet. He won six of the eight races to finish 14 points ahead of Finn Pye (Kerikeri High School), with Jack Hollands (Wentworth College) a further point back in third.
Daniella Wooldridge (Takapuna Normal Intermediate) was the top girl and 10th overall, with Lucy Millar (Gisborne Intermediate) second.
Alex Norman (Birkdale Intermediate) took out the Optimist class, finishing ahead of Sean Kensington (Kohimarama School) and Joe Leith (Murrays Bay School).
Nicola Hume (Remuera Intermediate) was the top girl and seventh overall, followed by Hannah Williamson (Belmont Intermediate) and Sofia Currie (Somerville Intermediate School).
"It was fantastic to see so many young sailors coming into our sport in both the Optimist and Skiff," Thomas said. "It's great to see two junior classes working closely together and coming up with some great ideas on how to make it even better in the future.
"This event has so much potential and it was incredible to see the kids and their parents just battle on in the cold and windy conditions with smiles on their faces."
The Aims Games is a rare chance for young sailors to compete for their school and Birkdale Intermediate took out the Aims Cup for top school in the Optimist competition, finishing ahead of Murrays Bay Intermediate and Balmoral School.
Results and standings from the Anchor Aims Games sailed at the Tauranga Yacht & Power Boat Club recently:
Optimist
Year 7 Girls
1st: Hannah Williamson (Belmont Intermediate)
2nd: Katie Mulcahy (Takapuna Normal Intermediate)
3rd: Miya Prescott (Otumoetai Intermediate)
Year 7 Boys
1st: Joe Leith (Murrays Bay Intermediate)
2nd: Josh Ferrissey (Murrays Bay Intermediate)
3rd: Marcel van der Voort (Glen Eden Intermediate)
Year 8 Girls
1st: Nicola Hume (Remuera Intermediate)
2nd: Sofia Currie (Somerville Intermediate School)
3rd: Caprice Chao (Glen Eden Intermediate)
Year 8 Boys
1st: Alex Norman (Birkdale Intermediate)
2nd: Sean Kensington (Kohimarama School)
3rd: Oliver Scott (Balmoral School - Auckland)
Overall Results
1st: Alex Norman (Birkdale Intermediate)
2nd: Sean Kensington (Kohimarama School)
3rd: Joe Leith (Murrays Bay Intermediate)
Schools
1st: Birkdale Intermediate (Alex Norman & Cameron Brown)
2nd: Murrays Bay Intermediate (Joe Leith & Josh Ferrissey)
3rd: Balmoral School (Oliver Scott & James Miller)
O'pen Skiff
Open Girls
1st: Daniella Wooldridge (Takapuna Normal Intermediate)
2nd: Lucy Millar (Gisborne Intermediate)
Open Boys
1st: Ted HOURY (Springbank School)
2nd: Finn Pye (Kerikeri High School)
3rd: Jack Hollands (Wentworth College)
