Benn Smith has qualified for the Youth World Sailing Championships in Sanya, China, at the end of the year.

The 17-year-old Saltus student secured his spot in his final year of eligibility after finishing an impressive 20th in the 97-boat Laser Radial fleet at the Laser Midwinters East Regatta in Clearwater Beach, Florida, last month.

He beat out local rival Campbell Patton, who finished an equally impressive 26th, for the lone Bermuda qualifying spot up for grabs on the Gulf of Mexico.

“The primary goal was to beat Campbell because this was a qualifier, and I did that,” Smith said. “It’s going to be a huge honour representing Bermuda at the Youth Worlds.

“This was my last year of eligibility to compete at the Youth Worlds and there was lot of pressure on me — especially on the last day because the points started to get kind of close.

“He [Campbell] would have had to beat me by 12 boats, but I was able to get ahead of him and stay ahead of him.”

Last summer Patton got the better of Smith in similar circumstances when the Sail Canada Youth National Championships in Kingston, Ontario, were used as the qualifier.

“Last year it went really bad because I had three big mistakes,” Smith recalled. “But this year I was able to avoid making as many mistakes and keep my concentration.”

The son of multiple world Sunfish champion Malcolm Smith managed two top-three finishes, including victory in the first of the ten-race series.

“First day was kind of medium winds, which I liked a lot,” Smith added. “But then it [breeze] dropped down to five knots for the rest of the racing. It was kind of my weakness, but it was pretty good.”

If all goes accordingly, Smith intends to sharpen his skills in the build-up to the Youth Worlds at overseas sailing camps.

“I’m really trying to work out my schedule because of college commitments at the end of summer,” he said. “But I’m planning on doing some clinics; maybe in Mexico.

“I’m starting to move into the full rig right now and so I am trying to get bigger. But I am going to have to drop weight for the event in China.”

The Youth Worlds, which are expected to feature more than 400 sailors from 60 nations, will be contested on the waters off Hainan Island from December 9 to 16.