Belcher and Page win 470 North Americans

A fourth place in the medal race was enough to secure the North American 470 title for Australian Sailing Team members and World Champions, Mat Belcher and Malcolm Page.

Going into the final day tied for the lead with Americans Stuart McNay and Graham Biehl, the Australians were in a bit of trouble after the first race of the final day. They could manage only 7th in the race which the Americans won. Both teams dropped their next race (18th for the Aussies, 21st for the USA) and Belcher and Page were staring down the barrel of defeat.

However, just as they did at Sail melbourne, they managed to use the double-points medal race to their advantage, finishing 4th to the Americans 9th, giving them a four point victory.

Coach Victor Kovalenko described it as "a difficult regatta, especially with the light winds on the last day".

The other Australian team, Sam Kivell and Will Ryan, finished 10th after winning the medal race.

Both crews will now join up with other members of the Australian Sailing team at the Miami leg of the ISAF World Cup, which begins on January 23.

http://www.mysailing.com.au/news/belcher-and-page-win-470-north-americans