A team skippered by Sebastian Ripard have just been crowned UK national champions in the J70 Class. The races were held in Plymouth, England.

The J70, with four-man crews, is the fastest growing one-design keelboat ever with over 1,100 sold inside four years worldwide.

Ripard was at the helm of a team that included his uncle, Jonathan Calascione, and Scottish sailors Fynn Sterritt and Dave Kohler.

The fleet included some of the best sailors in the UK, including Ben Saxton, who has just returned from the Rio Olympics where he placed fifth in the Nacra Class, James Peters, who is in the Team GB development squad for Tokyo 2020, and Fiona Hampshire, the reigning RS800 national champion.

The combined Maltese-British crew won the 10-race series, held in varied conditions which included light winds on the first day followed by some wet and very windy weather with visibility, at times, down to 30 metres.

“We are delighted to have won the UK national title which was one of our objectives at the start of the season when we embarked on this campaign,” Ripard said.

“The UK fleet is one of the best in the world, so it was a good test for us. Now we head off to Lago di Garda for the EuroCup. As the Italian fleet will be difficult to beat as well, it will be excellent preparation for our ultimate goal – a top-10 slot at the World Championships in Porto Cervo, Sardegna, next year.”