A HAMPSHIRE sailor has scooped a silver for Great Britain at the Youth World Championships. 

Santi Sesto Cosby, a Southampton schoolboy from Lymington, shared the spoils with Leo Wilkinson in the male 29er class. 

Sesto Cosby and Wilkinson went into the final day of the regatta in the Dutch city of The Hague with a battle on their hands, as only one point split the teams in second, third and fourth.

The pair only teamed up in early 2022 but have since formed a formidable partnership.

They won the RYA Youth National Championships in April, and in turn were selected to represent Great Britain at the Youth World Championships.

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“We knew we had the potential to do well but it is fair to say we weren’t the favourites to win the Youth Nationals,” said 16-year-old Sesto Cosby, who has just finished his GCSEs at King Edward VI School in Upper Shirley.

Daily Echo:

"Since getting selected we turned up the training, and we went into the Youth Worlds aiming to sail as best as we can. As the event went on we settled into a top five position and then went into the final day trying to stay on the podium."

With the Argentinian pair already guaranteed the gold, the race was on for the remaining podium spots with just one point splitting the next three teams.

To secure silver, Sesto Cosby and Wilkinson had to beat their Spanish rivals – who were nipping on their heels the entire race.

"The final race was super tense," added Henley College pupil Wilkinson, aged 18. 

"We knew we had to keep the Spaniards behind us, so to cross the line one place ahead of them was amazing."

Sesto Cosby will now team up with a new crew in the 29er. He intends to campaign to compete for Great Britain at the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.

The success of the young sailors and their teammates put Great Britain fourth on the overall scoreboard out of 67 nations competing at the Youth World Championships.

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