Bermuda's young sailing prospects launched their campaigns at the 2026 Optimist World Championship in Morocco, navigating tricky conditions on a weather-inhibited opening day of racing.
Light and unstable breeze across Tanger Bay severely disrupted the schedule at the Royal Yacht Club de Tanger, meaning only a single race could be successfully completed in the opening fleet series.
Despite the tactical headaches presented by the changing currents, Thomas McBain handled the pressure superbly. Flying the flag at the top of the Bermudian contingent, McBain executed a smart tactical strategy to cross the line in 24th position, picking up 15 points to sit well within striking distance of the frontrunners in the massive fleet of nearly 300 international sailors.
It proved to be a steeper learning curve for his teammates, who found themselves caught on the wrong side of the initial shifts. Miguel Leite leads the chasing pack for the island nation, placing 115th out of the gate with 61 points.
Further back, Heath Meyers sits in 166th position after collecting 84 points, while Rex Henagulph is just six places behind in 172nd with 86 points. Jesse Savage completed the opening race scorecards for Bermuda, weathering a tough start to round out the fleet in 184th with 90 points.
With a massive scheduling backlog and plenty of individual fleet racing remaining before the Team Racing segment begins, the young Bermudian squad will look to use the drop-race system to their advantage when conditions hopefully stabilize tomorrow.
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