Top crews for major championship events

Ireland is to stage a series of world championship events over the next two weeks. Skerries and Dun Laoghaire are the venues for the Heineken GP14 World Championship and the prestigious Dragon Gold Cup respectively, both running at the same time. Also in 10 days, the Optimist World Championship begins.

Irish hopes are high for success at the GP14 Championship at Skerries where 142 boats from six nations have entered. However, reigning world champion Richard Estaugh from Britain is in extremely good form at present, having won the Leinster Champion ship at Sutton with his crew Simon Potts last week.

Originally intended as a general purpose family boat, the 14-foot 'geep' has a crew of two and is sailed around the world, predominantly in Britain, Africa and Australasia as well as Ireland. Most of the fleet at Skerries are wooden boats with 90 per cent of the most competitive GP's constructed by Alistair Duffin in Belfast.

Conditions at Skerries will prove tricky for visitors and locals alike as many of the overseas crews will be more used to lake sailing than open sea. Irish crews, meanwhile, have to contend with principal race officer Peter Craig setting courses in a heretofore unused area, off the Fingal coastline.

Seven races are planned for the championship which will be opened by President Robinson tomorrow at 12.30 p.m. This is followed by a practice race in the afternoon with serious racing starting on Sunday. Monday and Tuesday have two races each day while Wednesday is a rest/reserve day. Two more races on Thursday and Friday conclude the series. One discard is allowed.

The Irish line-up in the Gold fleet is led by Hugh Gill and Stephen Boyle who ended second overall last weekend and have Estaugh firmly in their sights.

Putting this pair under pressure in turn will be Olympic 49er hopefuls Donal Byrne with Allen Parker. Defending Irish champions John and Donal McGuinness should also feature while the general opinion seems to be that if Estaugh cannot be displaced, at least a top 10 or top five result is likely by an Irish crew.

Other homeside crews with potential albeit not so predictable must include Ruan O'Tiarnaigh, the 1995 ISA Helmsman champion who has past world champion crew Paul Fekkes crewing. Peter and Brian O'Hara are also tipped to perform but only really in breezy conditions - early forecasts for next week suggest light weather.

Internationally, the class is dominated by Estaugh and other British crews such as Craig Burlton who has several wins to his credit and sailmaker Chris Maxfield who is sailing well.

While some surprises may come from other more far flung visitors, most of these will be sailing strange boats chartered locally.

However, the Parker brothers from South Africa are considered an unknown quantity and could produce some special effects.

The prestigious Dragon Gold Cup returns to Dun Laoghaire for the second time in less than 10 years, this summer to the Royal Irish Yacht Club where intensive preparations for the event have been underway for months. As with their smaller GP14 counterparts, a strong but far less predictable overseas contingent will make an Irish win a tough but achievable prospect.

These elegant three person keelboats are well known for their close racing but also for the fine tradition associated with the class that dates back to the 1920s. Among the 78 boat fleet will be Fafner owned by Don Street from west Cork. This was the winning yacht in the first Gold Cup held in 1937. The line-up will also be peppered by older classic wooden boats of varying ages that are always held in special regard.

Six races determines the winner of the Gold Cup but in keeping the seriousness of the challenge, all races count as no discard is permitted.