Itchenor Sailing Club
Itchenor, Chichester, United Kingdom
This will be the ISC's fourth time competing in the Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cups, having competing in every event since 2011 except for 2013. The club's best finish was eighth in 2015.
From humble beginnings with just 50 members, ISC has now grown to a size of 1,500. The club focuses on racing dinghies and classic keelboats, has a thriving junior section, and recently became a Royal Yachting Association Recognized Training Center with a developing training program in both sail and power. ISC is proud to have a number of young members who have achieved success at the highest level, including recent Olympians John Merricks (Silver – Atlanta), Ian Walker (Silver – Atlanta and Sydney) and more recently Christina Bassadone in the Ladies 470 Class at Athens and Beijing. Ian Walker is also an America’s Cup sailor, a Volvo Race winning skipper and is currently Director of Racing at the RYA.
Team Profile
All sailors on the ISC team have come through the ISC youth program, with the exception of the bowman. In preparation for the 2019 Rolex NYYC Invitational Cup, the team has invested in a Melges 37 for training sessions.
This year, the ISC team will be skippered by Barry Sampson (left), a talented helmsman from Chichester, West Sussex, UK, who also led the team in the 2017 IC when they finished ninth. After 50 years of racing, Sampson is well-acquainted with the regatta world; his widespread experience competing at the helm includes sixth place at Copa del Rey and most recently, 12th place at Rolex Swan Cup 2018.
Keep your eyes out for Neale Jones (right), ISC's tacticion for this IC who has accomplished more on the water in just 15 years than many people do in their entire lives. Hailing from Ealing, London, UK, Jones is proudly recognized as the youngest person to ever finish in the top 3 at a major International 14 regatta (doing so at 15 years old), and the only person to have ever won the season opening event of the International 14 schedule (Easter Tray) 3 times in a row (2017, 2018 and 2019). As a skipper, Jones won the International 14 Europeans 2017 and the International 14 Nationals 2018 (POW), and placed second at the International 14 Worlds. As if all of this wasn't impressive enough, he also scored fifth place in the 2016 World Championships.
