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Megan Thomson was looking forward to cheering on her fellow Kiwis at the 2023 Congressional Cup in California - but instead, she will now duel it out with her compatriots and other leading match racers in one of yachting’s most prestigious events.
Thomson on Monday booked her entry to the 58th Congressional Cup – the “grandfather” of match racing - against all expectations by finishing second in the Ficker Cup at Long Beach Yacht Club.
She had teamed up with Nick Egnot-Johnson and his Knots Racing for the three-day event, which is part of the World Match Racing Tour and serves as a qualifier for the Congressional Cup, held at the same venue.
Thomson slipped into the semifinal on a tiebreaker before defeating Nicole Breault 3-1 for a spot in the final against American Christopher Weis – who won the title 2-1.
The second place was enough, however, for the 25-year-old Aucklander to round out the 10-team roster for the Congressional Cup – starting on Wednesday (April 19, NZ time) and also featuring Egnot-Johnson.
No one was more surprised than Thomson herself.
“The plan was for the Knots boys to use the Ficker Cup as a warm-up for their Congressional Cup and at the same time for me to get the opportunity to sail with and learn from them,” she said.
“I was more than stoked to just get an entry into the Ficker Cup, so to have qualified for the Congressional is a bonus I definitely hadn’t been planning for. In fact, I had planned to spend the week cheering for the Kiwis from the pier!”
Megan Thomson has qualified for the prestigious Congressional Cup - despite only driving with a steering wheel once before. Photo / Simone Staff, World Match Racing Tour
Thomson was full of praise for Egnot-Johnson and his team, who she will now line up against with a “pick-up” crew.
Other competitors include defending champion Ian Williams from Britain, Christopher Poole and Dave Hood (both US), Jeppe Borch (Denmark), Eric Monnin (Switzerland), Johnie Berntsson (Sweden), HarryPrice (Australia) and Weis.
“I really enjoyed the week and I was very lucky to have had the incredible team I did – all graduates from the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron’s Youth Training and Performance programmes,” Thomson said.
“They’ve all sailed these boats before, while it was a steep learning curve for me with it being only my second time driving with a steering wheel.”
Her first time driving a Catalina 37 was during training just before the start of the Ficker Cup, while her first time driving with a steering wheel was during last year’s US Grand Slam, a four-event match racing series sailed over a four-week period.
Thomson and Nick Egnot-Johnson's Knots crew after finishing second in the 2023 Ficker Cup. Photo / World Match Racing Tour
Thomson and her 2.0 Women's Racing Team of Ellie Copeland, Anna Merchant, Chelsea Rees, Josi Andres, Serena Woodall and Lisa Dartnall managed three top-five results – to finish sixth in the overall standings.
They followed that up with a third place at the 2022 Women's Match Racing World Championships in November.
Full results from the 2023 Ficker Cup here.
To follow the 2023 Congressional Cup, click here.
