Philip Sparks of Christchurch, England, won the Renaissance Reinsurance Junior Gold Cup with the low score of 14 points. Sparks overcame 34 competitors in the event for junior sailors from 10 nations around the world and Bermuda.

The Junior Gold Cup also was the final regatta of three to select Bermuda's team for the Optimist World Championship. The five sailors are Josh Greenslade, Jordan Saints, Haley Powell, Jason Saints and James Anfossi. They'll represent Bermuda at the Worlds in Montevideo, Uruguay, Dec. 29-Jan. 7, 2007.

"Josh is our no. 1 Optimist sailor," said event chairman Eddie Saints. "They way the Worlds team ended reflects the ranking in our country."
A total of 10 races were run over three days on Great Sound. The first day, Oct. 12, was light and shifty. Friday, Oct. 13, was canceled along with the King Edward VII Gold Cup due the threat of severe weather. A wide range of conditions tested the junior sailors yesterday and today.
Sparks won the event by 13 points over Greenslade. Third went to Marcus Hansen of New Zealand, who finished with 31 points.

"Philip was faster than most of the kids," said Saints. "He clearly dominated in the conditions that prevailed throughout the week."

The foreign competitors that competed in the Junior Gold Cup were selected with the help of the International Optimist Dinghy Association and national associations.

The International Optimist Association has fleets in more than 100 countries and is raced by more than150,000 junior sailors. It is the only dinghy approved by the International Sailing Federation exclusively for sailors younger than 16 years of age.

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