Bermuda sailing received a ringing endorsement after Genevieve Lau earned a spot on the podium at the 2019 O’pen Bic World Championships that concluded yesterday in Auckland, New Zealand.

The Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club youth sailor finished third in the under-17 girls age group and eleventh in an overall fleet of 69.

Lau completed the 12-race series level on points with American John Lattanzi but was pipped for a top ten showing overall on a tiebreak.

The BHS pupil achieved a highest finish of second on two occasions and produced four top ten showings overall, having placed fourth and ninth in the fifth and tenth races competing on the waters of Polkinghornes Bay Whangaparaoa.

Italian Davide Mulas claimed the under-17 title, with Australian Travis Wadley and Leopoldo Sirolli, also of Italy, rounding off the top three overall finishers.

The 15-year-old Lau was making her second appearance at the O’pen Bic World Championships having competed at last year’s event in Spain, where she exceeded her expectations on her international debut by placing fourth among the girls and eighteenth in an overall fleet of 137 in the same age group.

The O’pen Bic World Championships was hosted by Manly Sailing Club.

Developed by Vitali Design and launched in 2006, the O’pen Bic is a single-handed one-design sailboat designed for younger sailors and is an international class recognised by the International Sailing Federation.