Micky Beckett gunning for Princesa Sofia three-peat

By Megan Armitage

Micky Beckett is gunning for a golden Princesa Sofia three-peat to mark his tenth anniversary at the event.

The ILCA 7 sailor has ruled the seas of Palma de Majorca for the past two years, winning the prestigious event in both 2022 and 2023.

And Beckett, who won bronze at the ILCA 7 World Championships in January, could not be more excited to get back out on the water in Spain and defend his title ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics.

"The first World Cup I ever did was this event exactly 10 years ago in 2014," he said. "So apart from Covid when the event was cancelled, I've done it every year since.

"It's an event I've always held in very high regard and it's an exciting place.

"It's a massive event and it's a tough regatta, with long days on the water a very long way from land. But I guess that's suited me for the last couple of editions.

"Defending my title this year would show that I'm on track with my goals ahead of this summer."

Beckett will have to go up against reigning world champion Matt Wearne of Australia in a bid to defend his crown in Spain.

But the Brit is confident that his training intensity and Olympic preparation has been just right following some much-needed rest and finetuning of basic skills.

"After the worlds I took a break because I recognised that it was the only sort of time to really take one ahead of the Olympics," he said.

"I wanted to get my run-in right and that involves taking a bit of a break and then coming back to training with the right intensity towards the end of February.

"To be honest, we've gone back to basics a little bit in training.

"It was time to re go-over some speed work and a bit of decision making work and those are my other main goals for the Princesa Sofia other that defending the title."

Beckett will line up on the start in Palma de Majorca alongside 60 other boats in his fleet and he is ready for the opportunity to practice the larger strategical decisions that are so critical in his sport.

"Sailing is strange in that there are some things you just can't practice in training,” he said.

“Big decisions and big strategical decisions about how you race in a 60-boat fleet – you can't really replicate that without 60 boats.”

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