TEENAGERS Ben Mansfield and Ben Hinks successfully defended their National RYA Youth Championship title in the Hobie 16 class at Hayling Island sailing Club.

Helm Mansfield, 16, is a member of the Royal Southern Yacht Club, attends King Edward VI School in Southampton and lives in Hamble.

Crew Hinks, 15, lives in Netley Abbey and attends Hamble Community Sports College.

The pair, pictured left and in action, took the Hobie 16 Youth title by storm last year at the same event. They had only been sailing in the class for three months and started as complete outsiders. But they led on the first day and held on until the end of championship.

That won them selection into the highly-competitive RYA National Youth Squad, supported by the Sport England Lottery Fund.

Over the last year the team have followed a vigorous training programme both with the RYA Squad at a number of venues throughout Britain and on their own - mainly from Weston Sailing Club on Southampton Water.

They have also competed at national and international events, gaining a third place at the Open British Nationals at Bognor and finishing seventh at the Youth (under-21) European Championships in the Netherlands.

They finished the 2002 season by winning the Hobie 16 Travellers Trophy.

The Travellers Trophy Series was run over the whole season with a total of nine events and the top four results counting.

The pair clocked up three first places, were second at Weston and Stokes Bay and also claimed one third place to place them first overall nationally.

At this year's national youth championships, sailing conditions were very varied and the sailing area more demanding.

The two Bens found their form on the last day, eventually finishing 12 points ahead of the fleet in first place overall.

The championship was also a selection event for the team to represent Great Britain in the ISAF Youth World Championships, an Olympic-style sailing regatta for youth.

In 2002 and 2003 the Hobie 16 class has not been included in the ISAF event but it will feature for the first time since 2001 in the 2004 regatta in Poland.

This year Mansfield and Hinks plan to compete again in the Hobie Association Traveller series, in the national championships in Pwllheli, Eurocat 2003 in Carnac, France and the Youth European Championship in Austria.