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It was a reasonably sombre Sean Herbert who went to prizegiving at the Starling national championships yesterday but that changed to elation when he discovered he had won a third title.
The 17-year-old created history by becoming the first person to win three Starling national titles, eclipsing the record set by Rohan Cooke (1992-93), Tim Christiansen (1999-2000) and Peter Burling (2005-06) who all won two.
It came as something of a shock, however, with Herbert believing he hadn't done enough to win following the final race. Once the results were tallied, it showed he finished one point ahead of Nathan Vince (Kohimarama Yacht Club), with Mattias Coutts (Manly Sailing Club), who went into the final day in the lead, a further 10 points back in third.
"It's pretty special," Herbert said of winning a third title. "I'm super-proud to have done it under the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron because of the club's history. It's still sinking in. I didn't know I had won until prizegiving.
"I thought I had fallen short by one point and that was really hard - everyone in my family thought I had fallen short as well so it was a little bit sombre - but I just sneaked through."
In the end, it came down to a matter of inches. Herbert finished third in the final race but wasn't convinced of his placing with Jake Pye (Bay of Islands Yacht Club) right beside him on the line. Vince, who would have taken the title if he had finished level on points with Herbert, was fifth.
Wakatere Boating Club's Ella Gladwell was the first female and seventh overall, finishing ahead of Stella Bilger (KYC, 8th overall) and Cleo Boyd (BOIYC, 18th).
Competitors had to contend with mostly light winds for the opening three days of the regatta at the Taipa Sailing Club before a 10-15 knot breeze filled in for the final two races.
Coutts established an early lead in qualifying on the back of consistently good sailing. He was in the top four in seven of his first eight races, including three race wins, with his only blemish a UFD disqualification.
Herbert was also consistent but he always felt like he was battling because of his extra size.
"The first three days were a bit of a struggle," Herbert said. "For the majority of the regatta I was just trying to hang on to the front group as much as I could so it was a case of damage control.
"I thought I did that pretty well because I had the lowest cumulative points and placed first in only one race."
Herbert isn't sure what the future holds, other than racing in June's open teams racing national championships in Kerikeri, but will pass on his wooden Starling to his younger sister. He is considering jumping into a 29er or 49er, or could move into a Laser.
"It depends a little on what they decide for the next Olympic cycle but I feel like I have a future in the sport," said Herbert, who won two O'pen Bic world titles (2012 and 2017). "Being able to jump back into the class with such little training shows that I'm capable. If it ends up being a Laser, then I'll give that a crack."
Results and standings after the Starling national championships at the Taipa Sailing Club:
Gold (44 boats)
1st: Sean Herbert (Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron) (5) 3 4 2 2 4 4 1 2 5 (6) 3 - 30 points
2nd: Nathan Vince (Kohimarama Yacht Club) 4 2 1 8 (14) 2 1 6 1 1 (10) 5 - 31 pts
3rd: Mattias Coutts (Manly Sailing Club) 1 2 2 3 1 (UFD 45) 4 1 (UFD 45) 7 5 15 - 41 pts
Also
7th: Ella Gladwell (Wakatere Boating Club) 6 11 17 7 5 1 (UFD 45) 3 4 13 7 (22) - 74 pts
8th: Stella Bilger (KYC) 3 6 10 11 5 3 (19) 10 14 (17) 9 9 - 80 pts
18th: Cleo Boyd (Bay of Islands Yacht Club) 19 (34) 5 15 7 6 8 13 15 21 (35) 12 - 121 pts
Silver (44 boats)
1st: Reuben Coxhead (Tauranga Yacht & Power Boat Club) 23 (37) 26 (DSQ 45) 16 13 19 13 2 1 7 1 - 121 pts
2nd: Max Faulkner (TYPBC) 20 (34) 24 24 12 (29) 16 20 5 4 10 2 - 137 pts
3rd: Lucy Bilger (KYC) 29 16 3 20 (34) 14 (35) 22 24 2 15 10 - 155 pts
Green (12 boats)
1st: Benjamin Brewer (Glendowie Boating Club) 1 4 4 1 4 1 (7) (7) - 15 pts
2nd: Quinn Brown (Point Chevalier Sailing Club) (DNC 13) (DNC 13) 2 3 1 3 1 6 - 16 pts
3rd: Sam Gowen (GBC) (9) (7) 6 2 2 4 6 2 - 22 pts
