A thirteen-year-old Mandurah girl will represent Western Australia in a national sailing championship next month.
Year 9 Frederick Irwin student Georgia Payne, with her crew Daniel Brown, will sail on one of two boats from Western Australia to compete in the Nacra15 National Championships in Lake Macquarie, New South Wales, from 14 to 17 April.
Representing the Mandurah Offshore Fishing and Sailing Club, the race will determine whether Georgia and Daniel qualify for the Youth Olympics in Argentina in October 2018.
The Nacra15 is a new build of boat to the world of youth sailing, best described as a smaller version of the Nacra17 Olympic Boat.
The two-man crew also recently won Line Honours and Handicap at the HMAS Perth Memorial Cat Regatta on 19 February 2017.
Georgia will be one of the youngest Nacra15 skippers in the country at this event, and said she was honoured and excited to be representing WA at such a young age in a class of boat so new to youth sailing.
“This will be the first of many interstate and international events for me and this one I will always remember I’m sure,” Georgia said.
“I have loved every moment of my dedicated learning and training and, as long as I feel the overwhelming love for sailing, I will keep striving for Olympics and maybe one day I will skipper an America’s Cup boat.”
Georgia is currently training on the water four days a week and three days in the gym with PRAS (Peel Regional Academy of Sport) and looks forward to travelling to NSW to represent her state.
