Our 2024 Barton Rising Star Ralph Hadley travelled to Mar Menor, Spain on the 18th July to compete at the ITCA Topper Worlds 2024.
A blisteringly hot week in the sun with changeable winds saw Ralph competing against 39 sailors in the 4.2 class coming from as far as China to race. Ralph had a strong start with 5th, 6th and 5th places in the first 3 races, before the wind really kicked up and tactics needed adjustment. 15 races were run over the 5 day event and huge credit to Ralph for consistently maintaining top 10 results throughout. He achieved 5th place overall at the event with 72 points. To highlight the close in the Topper 4.2 competition, 3rd placed Irish sailor, Tomás A’Coistealbha finished with 68 points!
For Ralph’s first ever World Championship, 5th place from a field of 39 sailors is a fantastic achievement and the whole event was a great learning experience. Racing against sailors from around the world, in a completely new environment, having travelled for many hours is no easy task and at Barton we are hugely proud to have him as our Rising Star.
There is no time for rest though! This weekend sees the ITCA GBR Nationals starting with racing from the 3rd to the 8th August at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy.
Since becoming the Barton Rising Star at the dinghy show earlier in the year, Ralph has shown real dedication to his sailing career. He has raced at all the NS events around the UK, as well as many local race event in Whitstable. He has spent many hours on and off the water training and all his hard work is paying off. To see Ralph’s progress on a regular basis, follow Barton on Facebook and Instagram.
