McNaughton to represent Ireland in youth c’ships

OLD BAWN native Cora McNaughton has been nominated by Irish Sailing to represent Ireland in the World Sailing Youth Championships this December.

The event is seen as an equivalent to a Youth Olympics in sailing circles also.

Each country can send up to sixteen sailors who compete across a variety of classes. These include 420 (2-person dinghy), iQfoil (wind surfing), ILCA 6 (one person dinghy), 29er (Skiff), Nacra 15 (Multihull) and Kite boarding (formula kite).

Ireland is sending 4 Sailors this year who managed to meet the International Standard. Two boats from the ILCA 6 Class and one boat from the 420 Class.

Cora is part of the two-person team representing the 420 Class. Cora and her long-standing crewmate Sean Cronin qualified Internationally at Kiel week in July.

Cronin unfortunately is unable to attend due to other commitments, so Cora managed to secure another crew for the Youth Worlds (Matt Mapplebeck from Royal Cork Yacht Club) and Irish Sailing accepted her crew change request.

Cora and Matt won the 420 Leinster Championships in October which meant that they met the qualifying criteria.

This is also a significant achievement for the Irish 420 Class as it has been approximately 7 years since they have been represented at the Youth Worlds.

This is a good indicator of this high level achieved.

Cora has had a successful season so far winning the Irish Youth Nationals and the Connaught Championships with Sean, then the Leinster and Munster Championships with Matt and it is evident that from here on that her focus will be on the International scene.

This success was all the sweeter as Cora’s qualification for the Youth Worlds in 2025 was more a dream than a goal and this achievement has elevated her to the next level of International sailing.

While Cora continues to break the glass ceiling for young females in sport, for Irish Sailing, for the Irish 420 Class and for Blessington Sailing Club, this will only be sustainable with funding.

Cora needs financial support to train and attend International events in the build up to the Youth Worlds to achieve the best possible outcome.

Cora would like to reach out to companies who are in a position to give her Sponsorship. “It takes a village to raise a child” and “The easy part is getting there, the hard part is staying there” are both well-known terms in sport.

‘Cora has climbed onto this platform with talent, skill and hard work, it is now a matter of keeping her there.

Finally, the good news is that Cora is eligible (age wise) to qualify again in 2026.