Kiwis Win Australian Nationals in the 49er
New Zealanders Jake Bartrom and Craig Prentice have taken out the 49er Australian National Championships which concluded
on Saturday in Melbourne. A very satisfying win for the pair having beaten Australian hot shot in the 49er and winner of
the Sydney International Regatta and Sail Melbourne, Nathan Outtenridge.
“We were pleased with the overall improvement we made during the three Australian regattas,” says Craig Prentice. “We
had rig trouble at Sail Melbourne which we sorted out towards the end, and then finished the regatta pretty well.” The
pair then went on to record three out of six race wins at the National Championship giving them a six point winning
margin over second place-getters Lehman and Elliott.
The thee day regatta was hampered on the second day of competition by two metre swells restricting racing down to two
races rather than the scheduled four. Racing started on Saturday, the final day of the regatta, but was abandoned due to
lack of wind. Bartrom and Prentice were leading the heat on Saturday when racing was called off, and sitting
convincingly at the top of the leader board, the kiwi’s took out the Championship.
49er Australian National Championships
Top Five Results
1st - Bartrom / Prentice (NZL) – 9 points
2nd – Lehman / Elliott – 15 points
3rd – Outtenridge / Austin – 16 points
4th – Littlewood / Babbage – 21 points
5th – McNicol / Jarvin – 23 points