ON THE WATER Racing
Full steam ahead L
ong before the traditional season opener in Palma de Mallorca the
BST’s ILCA 6 squad were going up against the planet’s best at its World Championships in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Huge waves and big
breezes dominated the six-day regatta, with both Hannah Snellgrove and Matilda Nicholls performing well. Nicholls came in 16th while Snellgrove got into the top ten, resulting in her being chosen to represent Britain at Paris 2024 (read more on page 53). Snellgrove said, ‘It’s exciting that I felt there were plenty of points left out on the racecourse, meaning room for improvement.’ Six months away from the
pinnacle of elite sailing, two athletes who’d already earned their spot with Team GB were showing what they’re capable of. Micky Beckett capitalised on a great 2023 with bronze at the ILCA 6 World Championships in Adelaide, Australia (see
Hannah’s performance in Argentina has earnt her a spot at the Olympics.
The British Sailing Team hit 2024 at pace in preparation for the Olympics
ˣ˔˚˘ ʨʦ ˛˜˘ ˜˗˦˨˥Ѓ˚ ace Emma Wilson scooped a silver at the iQFOiL World Championships in Lanzarote. Wilson put on a show of
authority, winning 15 of the 20 races and building a huge 62-point lead heading into the medal series. However, she fell foul of the iQFOiL class’s punishing format which sees the top three riders compete in a winner-takes-all shoot out. ˆ˛˘ Ѓ˜˦˛˘˗ ˦˘˖˗ ˔˙˧˘˥ being given a time penalty. Wilson said, ‘Obviously I’m
disappointed, but I gave it ˘˩˘˥˧˛˜˚ ˜ ˧˛˘ Ѓ˔ ˥˔˖˘ʡ This week my speed has been incredible; I know I can do it. I’m not sure this format is the fairest, but it is what it is. For the Olympics I’ll come back and go one better.’ As we went to print, all eyes
turned to Mallorca for the 470 class World Championship, with several British Sailing Team crews going for podium spots. Follow the BST’s journey at
britishsailingteam.com and @britishsailing on Instagram.
Racing AI improves race
rating system Since its introduction at the beginning of 2023, the RYA’s YTC rating system has produced ˖˘˥˧˜Ѓ˖˔˧˘˦ ˙˥ ˠ˥˘ ˧˛˔ ʤʥʣʣ boats at 95 clubs across Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Powered by the RORC Rating
˂˙Ѓ˖˘ ˧˛˘ ˦˦˧˘ˠ ˛˔˦ ˕˘˘ ˨˦˘˗ by an estimated 5,500 sailors to race. Simple to use, boat owners ˖˔ ˕˧˔˜ ˔ ˙˥˘˘ ˥˔˧˜˚ ˖˘˥˧˜Ѓ˖˔˧˘ ˕ ˣ˥˩˜˗˜˚ Ѓ˩˘ ˘˔˦˜ ˕˧˔˜˔˕˘ boat measurements.
One of the challenges any rating system faces is that some boats ˗Ϡ˧ Ѓ˧ ˧˛˘ ˙˥ˠ˨˔ ˔˦ ˘ ˔˦ others. However, help was close to home. The RYA YTC contracted Sam Smithwick, a master’s student in mathematics and the son of ˅˂˅ʶ ˅˔˧˜˚ ˂˙Ѓ˖˘ ˗˜˥˘˖˧˥ ʽ˔˦ Smithwick, to work on the project. ˈ˦˜˚ ʴ˥˧˜Ѓ˖˜˔ ʼ˧˘˜˚˘˖˘ ʛʴʼ Sam used the boat data from YTC and the internationally renowned IRC system to generate different versions of the formula. The results led to changes which reduced the deviation for some of the non-standard boats.
The updated formula is being rolled out this year and, at the time of writing, the RYA believes it’s unique for a rating system to use AI in this way. Find out more on the YTC rating system at
ytc.rorcrating.com
rya.org.uk SPRING 2024 55
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