Morris Goes for Gold at Sailing Grand Slam in Spain

New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) scholarship holder Grae Morris and Western Australian Zoe Thomson have claimed a gold medal each at the Trofeo Princesa Sofía regatta, held over the past six days in Mallorca, Spain. Morris took the win in the Men’s iQFOiL after topping the overall leaderboard and sealing gold with a win in the final race. Thomson also led her fleet heading into the final day and clinched victory with a second-place finish in the ILCA6 medal race.

In the Men’s iQFOiL, Morris continued his momentum from his win at the iQFOiL International Games last month. Throughout the week his speed was evident in several races as were some big areas for improvement as he adapts to the new 8.0m sail size.

“I’m happy I was able to win a medal race straight off the bat, and just happy to finish we got first overall as well It’s always good sign,” he said fresh from his race win.

“There’s still a lot to work on, as the last couple of days showed, so it’s going to be a long year.”

“We’ve been working pretty hard and happy to see where it’s going and hopefully it just keeps getting better from there.”

Thomson, who had finished second at the event the past two years, was elated to secure her first win in Palma and her first major senior event victory.

“It’s good to start the quad and set my intentions,” she said.

“Of course, it highlighted some areas to work on in big fleet racing, but being my first bigger win, I’m happy with the week and glad I got it done.”

It was a well-earned result and a strong signal of what’s to come as she ramps up her LA 2028 campaign.

It was a mixed bag for the rest of the ILCA 6 squad, who’ve been training hard together through the Australian summer. Palma offered a valuable tune-up ahead of their World Championships next month in Qingdao, China, the iconic venue from the 2008 Olympic Games.

There was a major milestone in the Nacra 17, with three Australian teams making the top-10 medal race. Paris Olympians and NSWIS athletes Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown led the charge in fifth, followed by Ruben and Rita Booth in seventh, and NSWIS athlete Archie Gargett with Sarah Hoffman rounding out the top ten – a big boost for Australia’s mixed multihull depth.

The ILCA 7 also impressed, with Pathway Team athletes Zac Littlewood and Ethan McAullay both notching multiple top-three race finishes. Littlewood ended just one point shy of the medal race in 11th overall, while McAullay wrapped up 16th after a solid start. Both will also head to Qingdao next month with the men’s ILCA7 World Championships set to be held alongside the women’s ILCA6 event.

Laura Harding and NSWIS athlete Annie Wilmot returned to international racing after a year-long break, finishing 12th. Despite missing out on the Medal Race, the duo showed clear progress and are taking plenty of positives from their development over the Australian summer and are focused on the next phase of training.

There was plenty of attention on new-look 49er combinations, including Paris Olympian Shaun Connor sailing with Otto Henry for the first time internationally. The pair showed glimpses of brilliance with two race wins and finished 14th overall, an impressive debut that sets the stage for future success.

The rest of the squad fought hard in the silver fleet and will be back in action at French Olympic Week in Hyères in just a few weeks’ time.

Australian athletes in the Women’s iQFOiL, Mixed 470 and Formula Kite are still in development phases, using events like Palma to identify key areas for growth. While the results were expectedly modest, the week offered critical learning opportunities for them to take into their next stage.

From Olympians to up-and-comers, the regatta was a chance for the Australians to test themselves against the world’s best. Some now continue their European campaign at French Olympic Week in Hyères, while others return to Australia to prepare for key events later in the year.

Story: Australian Sailing

Photos: Sailing Energy