Sail Melbourne began in style today at Royal Brighton Yacht Club, with Port Phillip delivering nothing short of glamour conditions to welcome sailors to Victoria.

Paris Olympians and up-and-coming sailors from around Australia and beyond took to the water today for the first of four days of racing, with all classes completing multiple races at what is one of Australia’s premier Olympic and Invited Class Regattas.

In the ILCA 6 class, Australian Sailing Team (AST) athletes battled it out at the top of the standings, demonstrating the strength of the class on home waters.

Victorian athlete Casey Imeneo (McCrae Yacht Club and Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club) posted consistent results throughout the afternoon, earning herself just six net points and finishing the day in second behind teammate and Tokyo 2020 Olympian, Mara Stransky.

“We had some nice little battles at the front end of the fleet which was good. We’ve got a great fleet at the moment, so I’m just hoping to get a bunch of races in over the four days,” said Imeneo.

“As always, we’re pushing each other which makes racing more interesting. It’s just good to be back in the boat after a bit of time off and to be getting back into it,” she said.

Day one also proved competitive for the 470 class, with three boats tied on four points for the top spot.

For Australian Sailing Futures sibling duo Ashlee and Brayden Daunt (Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron), the initial day ended on a high.

“We went pretty well today; got a three and a one which we were happy with,” said Brayden.

“We had lighter conditions for the first race with a typical Melbourne sea breeze, but it started to fill in a little more for the second race and we had really great speed.

“We managed to put ourselves in good positions and finish in a good spot,” he said.

Ashlee echoed her crew’s sentiments, noting it’s great to sail with someone who is like-minded.

“Sailing with my brother is fun because we’re usually on the same wave length,” she said.

“We have what we call a sibling synergy - I suppose when you grow up together and know each other's body language so well it makes it easier to communicate on the water.”

Sail Melbourne will take place at Royal Brighton Yacht Club from November 28 to December 1 and is proud to be supported by the Victorian Government’s Significant Sporting Events Program.

To find out more, click here.

To view full results, click here.