Virgin Islands Laser Radial sailor Daniel Petrovic recently placed 35th at the ISAF Youth Worlds in Langkawi, Malaysia on Dec. 27-Jan. 3.
Sailing a consistent nine-race series in the Laser Radial Class, Mr. Petrovic was pleased with his achievement.
“It has been an amazing experience and I am really proud to have been here representing the BVI,” he said. “I feel like I have learned a lot and improved through the championship and I hope that I have done a little bit to help put the BVI on the map.”
The ISAF Youth Worlds is a top event on the international youth sailing calendar. The regatta features one sailor per nation in each class. Mr. Petrovic raced in the biggest fleet of the championship with a total of 68 competitors. All told, 425 competitors from 76 nations competed in the event, which was a record-breaking edition of the championships.
Mr. Petrovic was selected to receive a scholarship from the International Sailing Federation during a training clinic in July. After almost two days of travelling he arrived in Langkawi, an archiplelago off the northwest coast of Malaysia.
“There were a lot of nerves on day one but once I got into the event there was a lot of excitement and I just wanted to do my best,” he said.
The event included nine races — two per day with one race on the final day.
Posting consistent results throughout the week, Mr. Petrovic had his best scores in the final race when he finished in ninth place.
“I’m stoked to finally break into the top ten,” he said. Rounding out the championship with a 27th he just edged out Antigua’s Jules Mitchel to finish as the third best sailor from the region behind Puerto Rico and the Cayman Islands.
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