University College Dublin finished 2nd and 3rd place at the 2011 IUSA National Sailing Intervarsity Championships, and end the 2010/2011 Academic year ranked number one in Ireland.

The Irish University Sailing Association (IUSA) National Sailing Intervarsities took place in Mullaghmore Co. Sligo from the 10th to the 13th of March, with 24 teams travelling to the west from all across Ireland and Scotland to compete in the event, hosted by UCDSC and Mullaghmore Sailing Club.

Despite bad weather postponing the event on Thursday, a moderate breeze early Friday morning allowed racing to get underway, to the relief of all involved. UCD’s first and second teams had a successful start to the championships winning all their races and finishing in top place of their respective groups during the pool stages. Teams UCD3 and UCD4 also had a rewarding day, with UCD’s third team qualifying for the gold fleet (ranking higher than the firsts team from Trinity, UCC, DCU and NUIG) and UCD’s fourth team qualifying for the silver fleet.

Saturday opened with a medium breeze providing perfect conditions for all competitors. The plan to complete another round robin before proceeding to the semi-finals stages for all fleets got underway. UCD1 and UCD2 had further success in the second round robin with race wins ensuring both teams had a place in the semi-finals of the gold fleet.

First up in the best of three semi-finals was UCD2 vs. UL1. UCD2 had a tough battle yet sadly their Intervarsity championship came to an end there with a 2-0 defeat to the Limerick side. In the second semi-final UCD1 faced the Scottish team Edinburgh University and after an intense two races, UCD1 emerged victorious with a 2-0 win and a place in the final, the first time in over seven years for a UCD team to reach the finals of the Varsities.

The final between UL1 and UCD1 took place with tight racing between the two teams bringing the best of five final to the fifth and last race. Despite UCD winning for most of the race, University of Limerick took the varsity title on the finish line to become the 2011 Intervarsity Champions. Although a devastating defeat for the UCD sailing team, they finish their academic year ranked number one in Ireland and with three UCD teams in the gold fleet and their fourth team in the silver fleet the future looks bright for UCD on the University Sailing circuit. UCDSC would like to thank all involved in the running of the event and look forward to their next event, Colours against Trinity.

Results: Gold fleet

1st- UL1

2nd- UCD1: Simon Doran and Christine Lynch, Barry McCartin and Sharon Quigley, Aidan McLaverty and Jodie-Jane Tingle

3rd-  UCD2: Andrew O’Donoghue and Gillian Condy, Rory Murphy and Mary Lucey, Nick Harger and Katie Curtin

www.ucd.ie/sailing