Kate Stewart won the Tauranga Cup in a thrilling finish on Tauranga Harbour on Saturday. Photo/Joanna Maidment
Kate Stewart won the Tauranga Cup in a thrilling finish on Tauranga Harbour on Saturday. Photo/Joanna Maidment
It was so close and yet so far for young Tauranga sailor Cole Rippey on the Tauranga Harbour on Saturday.
The 14-year-old went into day four of the Tauranga Cup P Class in first equal spot with Kate Stewart (Wakatere Boat Club) and Jackson Keon (Wakatere Boat Club) a closethird.
But the two races did not go Rippey's way with a fourth and a third placing and Stewart, 15, won the trophy that was first contested in 1940.
Rippey was unable to emulate Chris Dickson and the Tauranga duo of Jimmy Gilpin (three consecutive years) and Oscar Rorvik in winning both the Tanner Cup and Tauranga Cup in the same regatta.
It was a fine week for Rippey, though, and his six wins from six races to take out the Tanner Cup will take some matching by the next group of under-17 sailors.
Stewart made history by becoming the first female to win the cup since former America's Cup skipper Leslie Egnot in 1979.
The 15-year-old from the North Shore said it was unbelievable to have won such a prestigious competition.
"It is pretty mind-blowing actually. It is a tough event because four days definitely plays a part in tiring you out so it comes down to who doesn't lose it."