Getting good starts, especially in light wind conditions, led the USA’s Alexander Montagu to win the 31st International Optimist Regatta (IOR), hosted at the St. Thomas Yacht Club (STYC), June 14-16, 2024.
Thirteen-year-old Montagu, who races out of both California’s San Francisco Yacht Club and Florida’s Coral Reef Yacht Club (CRYC), was one of 104 sailors from the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, several USA states, Canada, and Germany that competed in this three-day regatta in 8-foot, single-sail Optimist dinghies where conditions averaged 8- to 12-knots of breeze under sunny skies.
The Winners
The top three sailors overall in the 2024 IOR were Montagu first, Florida’s CRYC’s Connor Karr second, and Puerto Rico’s Club Nautico de San Juan’s (CNSJ) Diego Delgado third.
Montagu’s first place overall also put him at the top of the 13- to 15-year-old Red Fleet after seven races in the Championship fleet.
“The light wind was a challenge for me, but it helped that I was able to get good starts and then continue to stay ahead,” says Montagu, a member of the US Optimist Dinghy Association’s National Team, who will also compete at the Optimist North American Championships (OPTINAM) next month in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and the Optimist World Championships in December in Mar del Plata, Argentina. “Learning how to deal with the seaweed will help me at the OPTINAMs.”
Overall Results: (top five in each fleet)
RED FLEET
- Alexander Montagu, SFYC/CRYC, USA (16)
- Connor Karr, CRYC, USA (28)
- Isabel Rivera Fernandez, CNSJ, PR (59)
- Cassady Lorentzen, Balboa YC/BCYC, USA (65)
-
Howard Zimmerman, STYC, USVI (70)
BLUE FLEET
- Diego Delgado, CNSJ, PR (28T)
- Wills Gandy, CRYC, USA (28T)
- Avery Pearsall, STYC, USVI (36)
- Thomas Weidner, Germany (51)
- Finn Hodgins, STYC, USVI (58)
WHITE FLEET
- Francisco Don, CRYC, USA (86)
- Jonah Watson, US Sailing Center Martin County, USA (104)
- William Weidner, SPYC, USA (147)
- Lucas Christiansen, CNSJ, PR (157)
- Weston Bowie, SPYC, USA (209)
GREEN FLEET
- Levi Hibbs, CRYC, USA (47)
- Ivan Riano Jr., CRYC, USA (54)
- Christopher Fulton Jr., CRYC, USA (64)
- Kip Hodgins, STYC, USVI (93)
- Isla Chin, BBYC, USA (127)
