Silver caps Thai triumph at sailing worlds

The youngster entered the competition’s closing stages in sixth, 20 points short of the bronze and with the silver considered out of reach. “He needs to place in the top three in three races to have a chance of achieving third,” As remarked Thai national coach Somkiat Poonpat before racing started.

With that start delayed due to lack of winds, hopes of seeing three races gave way to the reality of just one race to decide the medals. Voravong streaked off the line to lie second at the halfway stage before losing position and falling back for a fourth-place finish. On his return to shore, he was calm and collected, the Thai team having already impressed the world by clinching the gold medal in Team Racing earlier in the week. Coach Somkiat casually went to check results, only to find that Voravong’s fourth had lifted him to second overall in the individual racing results.

Adding to the pride of the Thai team was the fact Suthon Yampinid, who finished fifth in the final race, ended the regatta in ninth position, and Nopporn Booncherd moved into 26th overall. For a team that had not participated in the world’s top Optimist regatta in two years, to have three sailors in the top 15 in a fleet of 207 boats was not only unanticipated but probably unprecedented.

The team – including female sailors Sutida Poonpat and Intira Panpiboon – are expected to get a hero’s welcome when they land back in Bangkok tomorrow.

The gold medal went to Nicolas Rolaz of Switzerland and the bronze to Dimitris Papadimitriou of Greece.