Bermuda picked up its second medal at the Junior Pan American Games after sailor Sebastian Kempe endured a rollercoaster day to win silver in the Ilca 7 regatta.

After starting the final day in second place, Kempe dropped out of the medal positions altogether after finishing a disappointing eleventh in the first race before producing a stunning comeback to win the second event of the day.

That left him with an outside chance of winning gold in the final race but his third-place finish left him on 11 points, six behind champion Charles Barclay, of the United States, who won three of the five races in the series.

Kempe made no secret before the event that he was aiming for a gold medal, and he was a mix of emotions at the conclusion of the regatta.

“To get a medal for Bermuda is terrific but it’s a bit of happiness and disappointment,” Kempe said.

“It was a tough day and we always knew it was going to be a light-wind event. We did everything we could to make the best of it, but physics are physics and I did as well as I could to bring it back to win the silver, which wasn’t clear at one point. There are goods and bads, but at the end of the day a medal for Bermuda is always a good thing.”

Kempe could have made a stronger challenge for gold but for a wind shift in the opening race of the day, and he was philosophical after also picking up a race win.

“The opening race was just one of those races where the wind went really hard to the right and I wasn’t on the right,” he said.

“Once you’re in the trenches, it’s difficult in those light winds to make it out. I had to just take it on the chin and move on, but I got the job done in the second race by winning. I needed one more race like that in the last race — I put all the money on black and it didn’t work.

“It was a vicious comeback in race two and In terms of that performance I was happy with it, but I wasn’t super happy to be in that position in the first place.”

Kempe moves on quickly, be it from victory or defeat, and although finishing second means he misses out on an automatic qualifying spot for the Pan American Games in Lima in 2027, he is already focusing on his next event, which comes in just five days at the under-21 world championships in Dublin, Ireland.

“It’s quite easy to be frustrated with how things have gone and, of course, a little part of me is upset,” Kempe said.

“But at the end of the day, you have to look at it logically and there was not much more that could have been done. There is not much point in being frustrated at things that are not in my control and right now I’m switching gears to the under-21 world championships in Dublin, which is a sharp turnaround.”

Kempe was not the only Bermudian sailor in action at the Games, with Nicole Stovell ending the regatta eighth overall in the women’s fleet after tenth, ninth and eighth-place finishes on the final day.

Stovell was competing at her first major games and was understandably delighted with her performance.

“I was really pleased as a lot of girls here have been on the Olympic track or have been on the circuit for a long time,” she said.

“I finished just behind most of them and that felt really good especially because I have not been putting in the work that most of them have. It felt really nice to step back into the game for a bit and come out in a good position.

“I went in just hoping to be top half, but eighth was a bit better than that, so I am really proud of myself.”

Conditions proved testing for all sailors in Encarnación, with day two cancelled because of light winds, but Stovell was pleased with how she adapted.

“It was a hard venue but I liked the fact that with 19 boats it was a far smaller fleet than the 50 boats you get sometimes,” she said.

“That helped me keep track of the fleet and helped me to manage it better. It’s also easier to come back from nineteenth than it is to come back from 50th; not that I ever had to.

“The light winds were a struggle, but it’s so beautiful and clear here that it was easy to see the pressure and wind on the water, so that helped me as well. It was a random, light venue, and that’s not something any sailor wants, but it worked out well for me.”

The result has given Stovell confidence that she can compete with some of the best sailors in her region, but she is not sure that is something she wants to do regularly.

“I have a lot of stuff going on right now and I am trying to finish my degree, so I probably won’t be doing more of this,” she said.

“But it does make me feel like I belong. The jury’s still out. I’m happy to return to the collegiate circuit this season with renewed confidence in the sport and I’m glad I got to end my summer this way.”