Day two of the qualification series at the 49er World Championships in Cagliari, Sardinia, yesterday brought a mix of frustration and optimism for the Irish contingent, setting up a tense third day that could define their campaigns.
After a flying start to the regatta with a race win on Tuesday, Olympic veterans Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove were unable to maintain their early momentum in Wednesday’s light and unpredictable winds.
The Dublin pair showed flashes of the form that took them to the Paris 2024 medal race, producing strong starts in each of their three races — but struggled to turn those into results.
“I’m feeling a little bit frustrated because we had good starts and good speed, but we couldn’t convert that into good results today,” admitted Dickson. “It was quite hard to read — there was good wind on the right but sometimes it went left, and we seemed to find ourselves on the other side; it was all going the wrong way for us.”
Despite showing solid pace, tactical calls in shifting breezes cost them dearly, with results of 14th, 8th, and 22nd leaving them 41st overall — around 20 points adrift of the cut-off for the Gold fleet.
“We’re doing a lot of really good things, and we’re just going to continue doing those things and improve on what we aren’t doing well at.”
While Ireland’s most experienced crew endured a difficult day, the spotlight shifted to the young Cork–Dublin pairing of Ben O’Shaughnessy and Ethan Spain, who delivered a breakout performance on their senior World Championship debut.
After a challenging opening day, the duo bounced back superbly with finishes of 1st, 2nd, and 12th, catapulting them into 33rd overall and ahead of Dickson and Waddilove.
“We had a rough first day, so we didn’t know what to expect, but we’re delighted with the outcome,” said Spain. “I expected that we’d be more mid-fleet; we’re here for the experience and to get used to the fleet.”
“We had a tough day yesterday, and we knew what we had to improve on,” added O’Shaughnessy, “so we’re pleased that we did that. We have to take every day as it comes and while we’re happy with the result, we still have a lot more learning to do.”
Their consistency, composure, and sharp starts have turned heads, and while qualification for the Gold fleet wasn’t part of their original goals, a repeat of Wednesday’s form could make that an unexpected reality.
Conditions in Cagliari are expected to remain light early on Thursday before freshening later in the day. The 49er men’s fleet will race first, once again facing the trickiest of the conditions.
There are three final qualification races to come
Image Credit: Irish Sailing
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