Sailors hope to rule the waves after success earns top backing

Harvey Martin, 14, and Will Ward, 16, who are both members at Ogston Sailing Club, have been selected as elite athletes to receive support with the Derbyshire Institute of Sport.

The duo have competed together as a highly successful team in two-man dinghies. Their schedule has included many club and Derbyshire Youth Sailing racing events and they have regularly been at the front of fleets clinching podium placings.

Their achievements include a National Championship in the National Schools Sailing Association regatta, a European Championship in the Mirror dinghy and a bronze place in the RS Feva XL World Championships.

Both have been recognised as elite athletes by the Derbyshire Institute of Sport which has agreed to provide them with support. This will include access to sports coaches, nutritionists, physiologists and psychologists so they can identify strengths and weaknesses for improvement.

Harvey said: “The dedicated facilities at the University of Derby are fantastic and the DIS coaches and experts have so much to offer Will and I.”

Will said: “We’ve only just started coming to DIS and already it’s been great fun and quite a bit challenging.”

They have also been selected by the Royal Yachting Association for pathway squads at regional and national levels, winter and summer, with more training opportunities.

The duo won the prestigious RS Feva Crown Cup in the Czech Republic beating the 2012 World Champion.

A Derbyshire Youth Sailing spokesman said: “It is clear the Derbyshire Institute of Sport will be helping these athletes to achieve amazing results.”