When Whitsunday sailor Eva Lorenz won the Jessica Watson trophy for being “first girl” little did she know she would meet her heroine in Airlie Beach. Twelve-year-old Eva was presented the trophy at the Optimist State Championships in Mooloolaba on June 5.
“I think it’s great to have won this trophy as I think Jessica is a great inspiration for girls,” Eva said.
Jessica Watson, who was in the Whitsundays to promote the season of sailing and Ben Southall’s ‘best expedition in the world’, said it was great to meet Eva and see the trophy for herself.
“It was a shame I couldn’t be there but I seem to spend more time in other parts of the country than I do in my home town,” Jessica said.
“I’m very jealous of you getting to sail in the Whitsundays all the time,” she told Eva when they met at Capers on Monday night.
Like Eva, Jessica once sailed Optimists. “But only briefly and I never did very well because I moved onto bigger boats,” she said.
Jessica, who modestly maintains she’s “nothing special” and “not actually as exciting as they all make out”, had this message for her fans:
“I came from being scared of the water – it wasn’t me at all. I was the last person you’d expect to become an adventurer. But when it comes down to it, it’s really quite simple. Take the big goal, break it down to little parts and it’s actually quite achievable”.
Jessica signed Eva’s Whitsunday Sailing Club shirt and wished her luck for her upcoming competition in Singapore, where Eva is one of just two girls representing Australia in the International Optimist Asian Regional Championship Regatta from July 23 to 29.
Eva’s father Jeremy Cooper said he was very proud of his daughter and hoped this would encourage other girls to become involved in the sport.
“Girls can do anything in sailing,” Mr Cooper said.
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