Sailors Jason Waterhouse, Lisa Darmanin win gold at Tokyo Olympic sailing test event
COUSINS Jason Waterhouse and Lisa Darmanin have given their best indication yet they can turn Rio Olympic silver into Tokyo gold as Australian sailors won three medals at a Test event.
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SAILING cousins Jason Waterhouse and Lisa Darmanin have given their best indication yet they can turn Rio Olympic silver into Tokyo gold by winning the first Test event at the 2020 Olympic sailing site.
The Australian duo, who won silver when their Nacra 17 mixed class made its Olympic debut in Rio in 2016, produced their best regatta of the season to take the honours at the Olympic Test event in Enoshima, Japan.
Their win was followed by Matt Belcher and Will Ryan winning silver in the 470 racing and young gun Matt Wearn a silver in the single-handed Laser class.
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Sydney sailors Waterhouse and Darmanin saved their best for last with their victory in the final race vaulting them from second to first place overall in the foiling class.
Darmanin said she and Waterhouse have learned valuable lessons in the erratic conditions at the site, around 70km from Tokyo.
“All week we had offshore, shifty, puffy conditions. We had a bit of rain. Last week we had massive waves and sunshine,’’ Darmanin.
“So what we’ve learnt is that it’s going to be a really hard Olympic Games. We’re going to go home and train our little hearts out.”
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Waterhouse and Darmanin are under increased pressure to perform now London 49er skiff gold medallist Nathan Outteridge has joined the class with sister Haylee in a bid to qualify for Tokyo.
The pair finished fourth overall in Japan after only deciding to campaign a matter of months ago.
Waterhouse and Darmanin’s silver followed on from them missing a medal of any colour at the recent world championships.
Instead it was the Outteridge’s who became the first Australian siblings to win a medal (silver) at an Olympic class world championship.