International Mirror Worlds
Port Elizabeth, South Africa 2007

In January, I competed in the Mirror World Championships in South Africa with the rest of the Irish Sailing Team. The Mirror is one of the most popular one-design dinghies in the World with over 70,000 boats built Worldwide.
Each competitor had to qualify for their country. Ireland sent 24 team members, with over 160 sailors in total sailing in the World Championships. The Worlds are held every 2 years and the training is organised around this 2 year cycle. This meant going to Skerries, near Dublin at 7am every weekend from August until Christmas. One of the highlights was being presented with my uniform by Mary McAleese with the rest of the team.
Finally I arrived in Port Elizabeth on the 6th January, looking forward to the 12 race event. The weather was warm and very windy which made every day very tiring. The racing was very close and it was very easy to lose places with the slightest mistake. In the end an English boat won the Worlds, with an Australian 2nd and a South African 3rd. The best placed Irish boat was 6th and I finished 16th overall. The team prize again went to the English with the South Africans 2nd and the Irish 3rd. The whole event was very enjoyable and a fantastic experience, both on the water and off it. Sailing in warm water among sharks was memorable and going on safari was also brilliant.

Adam Hill