2008 Governor's Cup Teams Selected

'The Govenor's Cup organised by the Balboa Yacht Club.' Balboa Yacht Club

Twelve teams of expert young sailors from the United States, Brazil, New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom have been selected by the Balboa Yacht Club, Newport Beach, California, to compete in the 42nd annual Governor's Cup International Junior Match Racing Championship from July 16th-20th, 2008.

Racing may be seen from the Newport Beach pier and beach from the 18th through the 20th, starting at noon. The event's primary sponsors are the Newport Balboa Sailing & Seamanship Association ('NBSSA') and the Boat Barn.

Entry in the Cup is by invitation only for sailors under twenty years old based on applications from sailing clubs and associations worldwide. This year's record number of applicants resulted in 'the highest quality fleet we've had in years and probably ever', according to event Chair Craig Fletcher.

The Governor's Cup is the oldest junior international regatta in the world featuring a two boat, or 'match' racing format with each boat competing against only one other boat at a time and the scoring based on cumulative won-loss records. The theme of this year's event is 'Pathway for Champions' and recognizes the Cup has long been a proving ground for sailors who have gone on to fame in the Olympics, America's Cup and Volvo Round the World Race, to name a few.

US entrants will be led by last year's winner from Newport Harbor Yacht Club, Michael Menninger, who returns in an attempt to join seven other two-time victors in the Cup's long history. He and his team, which includes returning teammate Cole Hatton, as well as Chris Barnard, will face other top US teams including 2007 semi-finalist St. Thomas Yacht Club, top dinghy expert John Heineken from St. Francis Yacht Club and US Sailing Junior Triplehanded national champion Scott Hoffman from Mission Bay Yacht Club among others.

2008 marks the first entrant from South America in Cup history as 19 year old Marco Grael leads a team from Rio de Janeiro into the event. Marco is a youth dinghy champion in Lasers and Optimists and has considerable match race experience in his native country.

Australia, which has the most active youth match racing circuit internationally, sends two teams to this year's event, one from each side of the country. Perennial contender and previous winner of the Cup, the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia's team was selected to compete based on the experience of the team led by 2007 Australian Youth Match Racing Champion Will Ryan and his crew who return after a third place finish in the 2007 Governor's Cup. From Western Australia, the Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club will be represented by Peter Nicholas and his team of experienced youth and open match, dinghy and fleet racers.

Read the full story on Scuttlebutt USA : www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0613/

The two Australian Teams are from the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia and the Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club, in Cotteslow Western Australia.

The CYCA Team is Will Ryan, Ted Hackney and Sean O'Rourke.

The Royal Freshwater Bay YC Team is Peter Nicholas, Jasper Warren and Tom Johnson