Emma McDonald and Ian McSweeney of Howth YC won the opening race at the Mirror World Championships at Kingston, Ontario, yesterday and have taken an overall lead in the 10-race series. It was a superb opening day display by the 32-strong Irish contingent with their crews filling most of the top 10 places in yesterday's two races sailed in very light winds.

Matt Tracey and Nick Craig of the Royal St George YC led for most of the second race but were overhauled on the final leg by David and Joshua Gebhard of Britain.

However, overall Emma McDonald, who finished fifth in the second race, has a five-point lead over Matt Tracey, while Brendan Foley and Spencer Mitton (also from the Royal St George YC) are lying third. Meanwhile on a grander scale, the United States team competing in the Admirals Cup extended their overall lead of the event when inshore racing resumed yesterday off the Isle of Wight. Ireland's Tom Roche and the crew of Jameson scored two second places, contributing significantly to the US's overall performance.

The American three-boat team took the lead following the 24-hour Channel race that ended on Saturday morning. While the mid-sized team ILC 40-footer MK Cafe won the first race in her class, the larger IMS handicap Flash Gordon and the Irish Mumm 36 both were second in their respective classes.

In spite of poor opening races early in the event, the US took second overall behind the German squad and in particular the ILC 40 Pinta that appeared unstoppable. Now four races later, the US have opened a lead of almost 20 points.

Yesterday saw the 21-boat fleet race on Christ Church Bay, just outside the western approaches to the Solent. In marked contrast to the light winds on Saturday and Sunday that forced the cancellation of racing at Cowes Week, a fresh 20 knot north-easterly wind fed the Admirals Cup boats for their two 10.5 mile windward/leeward courses. In Roche's first race of the day helmsman Chris Larson had held the lead for the first half of the course but Italy's Breeze took command until the end. The second race was completely dominated by Breeze while Jameson steadily worked up from fifth to second.