Canada's Lewin-LaFrance sisters qualify to be nominated for Olympics in 49er FX sailing class
CBC Sports | Posted: March 11, 2024 3:14 AM | Last Updated: March 11, 2024
Duo from Chester, N.S., finishes 8th overall at world championships in Spain
Canadian sailing sisters Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance qualified to be nominated for next summer's Paris Olympics in the 49er FX class on Sunday, bringing them a step closer to their Games debuts.
The duo from Chester, N.S., finished second in Sunday's final race at the 49er and 49er FX World Championships in Lanzarote, Spain, moving them into eighth place overall.
The Canadians climbed from 16th to 10th overall in the preliminary races to qualify for the final.
Kingston, Ont., native Ali ten Hove and Toronto's Mariah Millen finished 30th overall.
"We knew that eighth, the place we needed to make in order to automatically qualify ourselves for the Olympics, was within reach," Antonia said. "In the medal race, we wanted to just sail the best we could. When we crossed the finish line in second, the reality of it hit us: we had just earned ourselves a ticket to Paris."
Canada has qualified Olympic spots in ILCA 6, 49er, 49er FX and women's kiteboarding.
The sailing competitions in Paris run July 28 to Aug. 8 at the Marseille Marina.