The Tribune

YOUNG sailor Paul De Souza won the 2016 Bahamas Junior Laser National Championship for the fifth year in a row earlier this month.

The ever-changing wind conditions led to frequent lead changes in all the races but De Souza’s greater experience eventually paid off, beating a fleet of 14 boats including a team of three sailors from Turks and Caicos.

De Souza, Cochise Burrows and Spencer Cartwright were tied on six points after the three races on day one of the competition. In wind conditions described as “light and shifty” none managed to gain the ascendancy, all registering a first, second and third in one of the first three races.

However, the second day saw De Souza victorious in all four of the races, taking advantage of the light but steadier wind.

De Souza, who was educated at St Andrew’s School, competed at the Youth Olympics in 2014 in Nanjing, China, where he was the Bahamian flag carrier.