Deepest sympathy at death of British Youth Sailing Squad member 

Sailing community in shock at death of young sailor Jessica Eales

The RYA offers its heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of British Youth Sailing Squad sailor Jessica Eales who was found dead last week (Thursday 31 July).

Having learned to sail in 2009, Jessica went on to compete in the RS Feva XL class before moving into the high performance 29er skiff class.

After a year of competing in the double-handed 29er, the Brockenhurst College pupil made the transition into the Spitfire catamaran class.

Following her performance at the 2014 RYA Youth National Championships in Weymouth and Portland this April, Jess was selected to represent the British Youth Sailing Team at the 2014 ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships in Tavira, Portugal, where she finished 11th.

Mark Nicholls, RYA Youth Racing Manager, commented: “Jessica was a popular young sailor who showed promising talent which can now unfortunately never be fulfilled. Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this sad and difficult time.”

The RYA has extended its support to Jessica’s family and members of the sailing community who knew her.