Yael Paz sailed to gold in the 2014 ISAF Youth Sailing World Championship in Portugal, giving Israelis something to smile about. Yahel Wallach and Stav Brokman secured a silver medal in their race, too.
A record 367 sailors from 67 nations took part in the Tavira contest.
Paz, 18, led the RS:X Boys field by just two points going into the final race but triumphed over the pressure to win the gold, with Italy’s Mattia Camboni taking second place.
“It’s a great feeling, and it was a tough race and really tight at the end but I’m so glad I won. It was massive pressure but in the end I managed to deal with it and I feel great and can’t wait to talk to everyone back home,” said Paz. “It was really tricky racing with strong competition. I won by one point in the end so it was really tight. It was really hard and before every start I had to think about what I had to. It was massive pressure but in the end I managed to deal with it.”
Yahel Wallach and Stav Brokman, of the Sdot Yam Sailing Club, won silver in the 420 Girls fleet race.