Grae Morris bags Silver at Long Beach Olympic Classes Regatta

The Australian iQFOiL and Formula Kite athletes took to the waters of Long Beach this week for a taste of the racing that awaits in just two years’ time at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.

After building a commanding 43-point lead over second-placed China’s Kun Bi, New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) scholarship holder Grae Morris entered the Finals Series ranked first overall. Advancing directly to the Grand Final, Morris and Bi both started with the advantage of one race win already on the board, with the first sailor to claim two wins taking the Championship.

As a result of the cut-throat nature of the Finals Series, Bi won the opening grand final race, with Morris crossing the line third. The result left the Australian with the silver medal, but also valuable experience at the future Olympic venue.

“I ended up with a pretty decent lead coming into this day and knew it was going to be pretty hard to finish it off in this medal race, but I had fun and learned a lot,” said Morris.

Reflecting on the future Olympic venue, he added, “It’s pretty cool, good environment, a few islands to tack around, a few tankers and there’s a bit going on. You’ve got to keep your eyes open and it’s not going to be easy, that’s for sure.”

Nineteen-year-old Rory Meehan also impressed in the highly competitive iQFOiL fleet.

“The event went really well, a new personal best for me,” said Meehan. “To be able to race with all the big dogs in the fleet was really good. We had all different conditions, sprint racing, course racing and the medal race, so I’m really happy with my result.”

Meehan finished fifth in the Elimination Series to advance to the quarter finals, where he placed third, narrowly missing progression to the semi finals and finishing seventh overall.

“Didn’t quite do as well as I would have wanted in the medal race as I got a bit caught up in the start, but I still had a great week and I’m very happy,” he said.

Breiana Whitehead also delivered a strong performance in the Formula Kite fleet, finishing seventh overall. After 16 races, Whitehead progressed to the Finals Series in sixth place.

“I had a good week of racing, although it feels much shorter than we’re used to,” said Whitehead. “Lots of close racing, mostly on our 15m kites and fully powered, which kept it fun and the legs working hard.”

“I had some process goals for this week that I’m really happy to have made progress on, so overall I’m pleased with the racing, but there’s still more work to do.”

In the men’s Formula Kite fleet, Queensland’s Oscar Timm finished 22nd overall.

With valuable time on the water at the future Olympic venue forming a critical part of the campaign towards LA2028, the Australian athletes will remain in Long Beach for several more days to maximise training opportunities and continue building their knowledge of the racecourse.

Next up is the San Pedro Olympic Classes Regatta in the Port of Los Angeles, with the ILCA 6, ILCA 7 and 470 fleets racing from 20–24 July, before the 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 classes take to the course from 3–7 August.

Full list of results can be found here

Australian Sailing Team (AST),Australian Sailing Squad (AS Squad) and State Sailing Performance Program (SSPP) results the Long Beach Olympic Classes Regatta: 

iQFOiL – Men (36 entries)  
2nd – Grae Morris (AST)  
7th – Rory Meehan (AS Squad)

Formula Kite – Women (24 entries) 
7th – Breiana Whitehead (AST) 

Formula Kite – Men (36 entries) 
22nd – Oscar Timm (SSPP)

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Photo: Beau-Outteridge