Canada qualifies six additional country spots for the Lima 2027 Pan American Games
Kingston, August 9, 2026 – Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance closed their 2026 campaign in 49erFX with a fifth-place finish at the fifth and last Sailing Grand Slam event of the season, the 2026 Long Beach and San Pedro Olympic Classes Regattas, which ended August 8.
The sisters from Nova Scotia had a strong start to their week with a first-place result, and then slipped in fifth place after the third day of racing. They moved up to third place after day four, before going back in fifth place before the Final Series, a position they weren’t able to improve on over the final day of the competition on Saturday.
Vilma Bobeck and Ebba Berntsson from Sweden, the 2025 World Championship silver medalists, won gold, followed by Paul Barcelo and Maria Cantero from Spain, gold medalists at the 2025 World Championships and silver medalists at the 2026 edition, and Freya Black and Saskia Tidey from Great Britain.
The 2026 Long Beach and San Pedro Olympic Classes Regattas were the last competition of the 49erFX season for Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance. Earlier this year, they won three gold medals – two at Sailing Grand Slam events, i.e. the Princess Sofia Trophy Regatta and Kiel Week, and one at the 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 European Championships.
“This fifth position leaves us with some mixed feelings,” said Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance. “We had fantastic conditions all week and put together several good races. We also made some mistakes that easily cost us the podium. It’s been a long season and we look forward to taking some time off in preparation for next season. 2027 will be a huge year, including Olympic qualifiers and the Pan Am Games. At this regatta, we qualified Canada a berth for Lima 2027, which will be a great opportunity to practise our routines in a major games environment. Thank you to everyone who supports us!”
Another Canadian team was in action in the 49erFX event at the 2026 Long Beach and San Pedro Olympic Classes Regattas, as Georgia Phillips and Anika Lange-Sorensen took the 18th and last position.
Canadian Sailing Team members Thomas and William Staples, as well as Galen Richardson and Madeline Gillis, respectively took the 25th position in 49er and 20th place in Nacra 17.
Six additional country spots for the Lima 2027 Pan American Games
Canadian sailors in action at the 2026 Long Beach and San Pedro Olympic Classes Regattas took advantage of the opportunity to qualify six additional country spots for Canada for the Lima 2027 Pan American Games, which will be one of the five scheduled qualifying events where country spots for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games will be up for grabs.
At the 2026 Long Beach and San Pedro Olympic Classes Regattas, Canada qualified spots in men’s and women’s Formula Kite, as well as in the 49er, 49erFX, Nacra 17 and 470 classes.
Canada has now qualified in seven classes for the Lima 2027 Pan American Games, a list that also includes the Lightning class.
The road to the Lima 2027 Pan American Games continues with many other qualifying competitions to be held over the upcoming year: https://www.sailing.ca/sc_event/2027-pan-american-games/.
About Sail Canada
Established in 1931, Sail Canada is the national governing body for the sport of sailing in the country. Sail Canada is a leading international sailing nation, proud of its world class athletes, lifelong participants and inclusive culture. The organization and its members are committed to excellence by developing and training its leaders, athletes, sailors, instructors, coaches and officials. With the valued support from our partners, the Provincial Sailing Associations and our member clubs, schools, organizations and stakeholders, sailing is promoted in all its forms. By setting standards and delivering programs from home pond to podium for Canadians of all ages and abilities, from dinghies to keelboats, cruising to navigation, windsurfing to powerboating and accessible sailing, Sail Canada sets sail for all, sail to win and sail for life.
A sport in the Olympic program since the first Games in 1896, except in 1904, the pursuit of success in these Games is what fuels the focus of Sail Canada as Canadian athletes have so far achieved nine Olympic and five Paralympic medals.
