Sports Digest/SAILING: After a weekend of battling both weather and rival contenders, Peter O'Leary, of the Royal Cork Yacht Club, emerged overall winner of the ISA All-Ireland Sailing Championships at Dun Laoghaire last night, writes David Branigan.
The result proved to be yet another Cork whitewash on the capital's doorstep as the winner was followed by multiple Olympic veteran Mark Mansfield in second place while his father, Anthony O'Leary, took third overall.
All three are synonymous with the 1720 Sportsboat class that was being used for the senior event at the weekend, albeit without using gennekers and sailing with just three on board, including the owner's representative for the loaned boats.
Club-mate Killian Collins was O'Leary's invited crew member and had received the invitation to compete in this "champion of champions" event as the 1720 class representative. He was also a previous winner of the junior title, also sailed in Dun Laoghaire just four years ago.
Compounding the Munster victory and haul of silverware southwards to the RCYC, George Kenefick took the junior title in the parallel event that was sailed in Topper dinghies.
The overall girls winner was Rachel Guy after a hard-fought battle with Annalise Murphy.
Ekelundh wins again
WOMEN'S GOLF: Sweden's Cecilia Ekelundh clinched her third victory on the Ladies' European Tour with a final-round 70 at the Ladies' English Open at Chart Hills in Kent yesterday.
Germany's Martina Eberl, with a closing 70, finished second, one behind Ekelundh's six-under-par winning total. Local favourite Danielle Masters birdied the 18th for a 70 and was the leading British player in third place on four under par, two shots behind Ekelundh, whose two previous wins came in Portugal.
Yorkshire's Rebecca Hudson, a winner in Hungary in July, had a fine last day 69 and finished in tie for fifth place on two under par.
O'Connor clocks fastest time in Blessington
ROWING: The five regional time trials over the weekend offered some statements of intent from those who hope to muscle their way into the national squads in the season ahead, writes Liam Gorman.
In Blessington on Saturday, Offaly's Rory O'Connor (19) took on and beat his old junior team-mate and friend Paul O'Brien (18) to be by far the fastest on the day and confirm the seriousness of his intent to wear the green again.
The staging of two separate time trials in different conditions made comparisons difficult across the 39 competitors, but O'Connor's time in the second trial of 17 minutes and seven seconds was impressive in the rough water, and over half a minute ahead of O'Brien, who was first away and had to dig in to prevent himself actually being passed. The fastest woman home was a junior, Laura Gannon, who clocked 19 minutes and 39 seconds in the second trial.
Women were to the fore in Ulster's time trial in Newry on Saturday. Sorted on weightings based on a projected world best time for their class, four of the top seven home were lightweights Orlagh Duddy (first); Karen Rentoul (fourth); Michelle Austin (sixth) and Heather Armstrong (seventh). Lightweight single sculler Danny Meanley was the fastest home on the day.
Netherlands win sixth World Cup crown
WOMEN'S HOCKEY: The Netherlands won their sixth women's World Cup crown after a second-half double from Maartje Paumen and a classy finish from Sylvia Karres earned them a 3-1 victory over Australia in yesterday's final at the Club de Campo in Madrid.
The thoroughly deserved victory broke a run of two final defeats for the Dutch and allowed them to claim their first World Cup since 1990.
The Dutch were given further reason to celebrate when captain Minke Booij was named World Player of the Year after the match.
"After losing the last two finals we brought in some new young players and they have performed wonderfully well in this tournament," coach Marc Lammers said. "We have improved and now have no weaknesses."
The Netherlands broke the deadlock when Paumen sent a fierce shot fizzing low into the net past keeper Rachel Imison from a penalty corner five minutes after the break.
Australia equalised with a Rebecca Sanders penalty stroke. Sylvia Karres then put the Dutch ahead and Paumen scored the winning penalty stroke three minutes from the end.
Earlier, Argentina, who the beat the Dutch after a penalty shoot-out in the 2002 final, won the bronze medal when they trounced hosts Spain 5-0.
Federer lifts title
TENNIS: Roger Federer's stranglehold over Tim Henman continued as the Swiss secured a 6-3 6-3 victory to take the Japan Open title in Tokyo yesterday.
It is the sixth consecutive defeat for the 32-year-old Henman against the world number one and his third this year, having lost to Federer at Wimbledon and the US Open.
But it had been hard to separate the two after the first five games of the first set, with Federer leading 3-2 but after that the Swiss streaked away to a 6-3 victory.
The second got off to much a similar start as Henman battled but Federer proved too strong to take the set 6-3. It was a ninth title of the year for the Swiss.
