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World No 7 Nick Egnot-Johnson and his Knots Racing crew of Chris Main, Zak Merton and Peter Soosalu secured the national match racing championship title after a thrilling final against Australia's Cole Tapper and his CYCA Youth Sailing Academy team.
Kiwi Egnot-Johnson won the best-of-five series final 3-2 after Tapper had won the first and third races.
The contest was decided in the fifth and final race where Egnot-Johnson came out on top in a tacking battle on the start line.
The Lighthouse 2023 New Zealand Match Racing Championships was held from October 26 - 28 and hosted by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron but sailed off Bucklands Beach Yacht Club due to continued wastewater overflow in the Waitematā Harbour.
Nick Egnot-Johnson, Chris Main, Zak Merton and Peter Soosalu won the 2023 New Zealand Match Racing Championships. Photos / RNZYS
The event saw six teams, including from Australia and New Caledonia, sail three round robins before progressing to the final stages on the RNZYS' fleet of Elliott 7s.
Jack Frewin and his RNZYS Performance Programme team finished in third place taking out the petit final early with two back-to-back wins against the New Caledonian team skippered by Tom Picot.
The competitive experience gained this past weekend for Frewin and his crew including Sofia Higgott, Ollie Gilmour and Oliver Lloyd was an integral part of their build-up at the 2023 Youth World Match Racing World Championship in Sydney in December. - with RNZYS
Full results here.
