World Etchells 2025: Graeme Turner, James Mayo, Ben Lamb win weird regatta, result wrap

2024 ended in disaster for this Sydney Hobart trio but they are now our first world champions of 2025 after an oddball regatta where they won only one race and a kid ended up on the podium.

Amanda Lulham

@amandalulham

2 min read

January 15, 2025 - 2:57PM

News Sport Network

The winners of the world Etchells. Graeme Turner, James Mayo, Ben Lamb. Picture: Nic Douglass

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2024 ended in disaster for this Sydney Hobart trio but they are now Australia’s first world champions of 2025 after an oddball regatta where they had just one race win, their worst result secured them the silverware and a kid ended up on the podium ahead of Olympic champions

The team of Graeme Taylor, Ben Lamb and James Mayo - left it to the final race to secure their victory at the 2025 international Etchells world championships - one of the closest, unusual, and thrilling championships in recent times with an extraordinary battle to the final race for the crown.

While finishing with just one win from nine races they still managed to finish ahead of their major rivals, an American team headed by John Dane III, which managed three wins in the regatta.

Jeanne-Claude Strong, Seve Jarvin, Max Jameson, just 12, and Sam Newton finished third with Strong the leading female skipper at the event also contested by Australian Olympic gold medallists Matt Wearn (Paris and Tokyo), Tokyo (Will Ryan) and Mal Page (Beijing and London) and Australia II winning skipper John Bertrand.

Racing at the 2025 world Etchells championships. Credit: Nic Douglass

In an unusual event, consistency paid the way for the Australian victory over the Americans with their worst result in the nine race series - a 27th - securing them the world title after being forced to match-race and force their US rivals out of contention for a top seven result.

“We were actually last and second last at one stage of that race,’’ said Turner, from the Mornington Peninsula, now a three-time world champion who also won the crown last year with Sydney’s Lamb and Mayo.

The racing at the 2025 world Etchells championship was close. Credit: Nic Douglass

“We ended up on equal points with them going into the final race but because our worst result was a seventh and their drop was a 16th we had to make sure they didn’t finish any higher than seventh in the final race. That’s why we match raced.

“I felt terrible. John (Dane) is such a ripper guy.’’

Turner and Mayo were aboard Master Lock Comanche, the favourite to claim line honours in the 2024 Sydney to Hobart, but which was forced to retired with mainsail damage while in the lead.

Lamb was aboard the yacht Zeus which was an early leader in the race for the overall honours before being forced onto the sidelines with foil damage.

Racing at the 2025 world Etchells championships on Port Phillip Bay. Credit: Nic Douglass

Turner said even the weather was a “bit odd” at the Etchells worlds run out of Royal Brighton Yacht Club with lightning, storms and rain along with days of fluctuating winds and periods of no breeze.

“It’s not the race wins that win you these regattas, it’s the races that when you are not doing well you manage to recover and get a good result,’’ Turner said.

“We have a street fight, fight back mentality to always been moving up.

“One race we were in 30th and got back to seventh. That was probably the race that won us the regatta.’’