Irish Sailing Development sailors Ben O’Shaughnessy (Royal Cork Yacht Club) and Ethan Spain (National Yacht Club) secured a bronze medal at the U23 49er European Championships in Vilamoura, Portugal, on Saturday.
After two days of postponements due to storms sweeping across Portugal, racing finally got underway on Friday. Conditions had improved significantly, with winds starting at approximately 10 knots before building to 20 knots throughout the day.
The disrupted schedule left just two days to complete the championship, with the 49er and 49erFX fleets sailing an intensive eight-race series.
O’Shaughnessy and Spain faced a challenging opening day, with strong gusts and an unsettled sea state testing crews across the fleet. The Irish pair finished the day just outside the top ten, recording a fifth place as their best result.
Saturday brought ideal conditions for skiff sailing and the pair took full advantage, recording two third-place finishes to climb the leaderboard and secure bronze.
There was some late drama, however, when their result in race six became the subject of a protest that threatened to put their medal hopes in jeopardy. The hearing ultimately went in their favour, confirming their place on the podium.
The bronze adds to an impressive run of international results for the Irish Sailing Development sailors, who were crowned U23 European Champions in 2025 and finished fifth at the 49er Junior World Championships earlier this year.
Speaking after racing, helm Ben O’Shaughnessy admitted:
“We had a tricky first day so I’m very glad we sailed so well today. It was a bit of a stressful afternoon with the protest but we’re delighted with the third place.
“We’ve done a lot of training since the fifth place in the Junior Worlds and we’re glad to be back in the medals here today at the Europeans.”
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