Sailing success: young sailors shine at the MSC Week 2025 off Durban
Image: Bev Reith
AFTER braving the elements offshore of Durban for five days, the MSC Week 2025, hosted by Point Yacht Club, finished over the weekend.
There were 22 yachts entered in the event, which was manned by 134 sailors, and they slugged it out over seven races.
Kenwin Daniels and his crew on MSC Donna Mia won the ORC Division.
Bluff resident Nicolene Henkeman and her team on board MH Performance Sailing's Element bagged honours in the L26 Nationals.
Michael Purvis and crew on the Upstadt emerged victorious in the handicap division.
Durban's Moses Mabhida provides a backdrop for the MSC Week 2025, in shot a some of the yachts competing in the ORC Division
Image: Chris Clark
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Also making a splash in the MSC contest that adopted the tag line 'Seas the Week', were two Durban school pupils; Seth Dass, a Grade 10 DHS pupil, and Eden College's Anna Correa, who is in her matric year.
Correa had her first outing as skipper of the MS Performance Sailing's L26 Velocity and finished third overall.
In spite of being fairly new hands at taking on the might of the ocean in a regatta, Seth and his team on the Cracker finished seventh overall.
'It was an incredible experience and the biggest regatta I've ever taken part in, which made it even more special.
'I made many unforgettable memories with my crew during the event.'
Seth said the wind conditions varied throughout the week, with the stronger winds on the first two days, testing their mettle.
As the fordeck on the boat, positioned in front of the mast, Seth was usually the one who would get the first feel of what nature was throwing at them in the form of wind and water.
'Being at the front meant getting completely soaked in the process.'
Seth said he and his crew appreciated 'the calmer conditions'.
One of his best moments came ahead of Day 3's start when he enjoyed a swim, until the bluebottles began to unleash their stings.
Another standout moment was their 2-hour 'exhausting but memorable' hike in uMhlanga.
'Our team maintained a positive and open mindset throughout. Even if we didn't perform well on a particular race or day, we always regrouped and focused on improving in the next one.'
Seth said they would have loved to have finished ahead of the sixth-placed Container World, the yacht that scored a point more than the Cracker and carried the more experienced Glenwood High School team on board.
'Given that this was the first major regatta for most of our crew, I think we did fairly well. It would have been great to finish ahead of them (Glenwood), but there's always next year. I'm looking forward to that,' he said.
Anna was also stoked by her MSC outing.
'Conditions were definitely tricky, shifting from strong winds on one day to hardly a breeze the next. It definitely tested a range of skills, and it was my first time skippering a sailboat offshore and in a race.
'I worked hard and gave it my all, and I'm really happy with how I did. I'm so thankful for the support of the team.'
Anna said the top-two finishers in the regatta were out of their reach, but 'I'm still happy with the third place we got.
'This MSC Week definitely ranks really high on my list of sailing achievements, because I really pushed myself and exceeded my own expectations. I learnt a lot.' she said.
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