A local father-and-daughter duo pulled off a remarkable upset at the Mirror Nationals over the weekend, clinching the title against a competitive 21-boat field.

Ballito business owner Paul Changuion and his daughter Polly emerged as the overall champions at the prestigious regatta, hosted by the Point Yacht Club in Durban, which drew top junior and senior sailors from across South Africa.

Despite being last-minute entries, the Changuions sailed with consistency and confidence across three days of racing, finishing five points clear of their nearest rivals, Cape Town’s Grant Ekermans and Luke Liebrecht.

The North Coast was further well represented by the Ballito father-and-son pairing of Thomas and Kai Funke – reigning provincial mirror title holders – who finished fourth.

Teams took on 11 individual races, with the worst two scores discarded.

The Changuions wasted no time in the opening races last Friday, immediately showing their title aspirations with two second place finishes. A gusty 10 knot north easterly made for tricky sea conditions and only three races could be completed on day one. The Changuions finished the day in second behind Ekermans and Liebrecht, with the Funkes in third.

In better weather on Saturday, Paul and Polly dominated the competition, claiming three individual race wins from four over two different courses.

The Funkes also had a strong day two, claiming top spot in one race and hanging onto third position. The top three positions were separated by just four points by the day’s end.

Sunday brought initially perfect weather. The Changuions took full advantage in the early ‘sausage, triangle, sausage’ courses, winning the first two races. The breeze died in the afternoon however, and Henley Midmar sailors Mark Hawksworth and Mika Malan showed their wile to claim the final two races and knock the Funkes into fourth.

But the Changuions had already secured an unassailable lead.

“I am really happy to have won it, I have sailed it a good few times and have never won it before, and doing so with my daughter was wonderful,” said Paul, owner of PrintWild Ballito.

“Conditions were light and tricky, so there was pressure all the way through. But we made good decisions, kept the boat balanced, and went fast,” he said.

Durban will become the global hub of mirror sailing in the coming weeks, as it hosts the African Championships from April 9 and the Mirror Regatta – the sport’s world championships – from April 13.

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