SAILING: A banner year for Irish sailing is in the making given the delivery by Irish crews of a European Olympic title, an International Dragon crown and a British championship win in a remarkable week for Irish sailing.

Last weekend's hat-trick of wins hail from two of the country's biggest Royal clubs who this week saluted the performances of their international and Olympic stars.

On the south coast, Royal Cork's Spring European champion Mark Mansfield has revealed that a developmental jib is one of the reasons behind his title success on Lake Balaton, Hungary last weekend.

Unbowed by Olympic selection squabbles ashore, Mansfield and crew Killian Collins underlined their Olympic abilities on the water with an overall win at the predominantly light air Star keelboat event.

It's a result that could not have come at a better time for the Crosshaven pair who are centre stage in a legal wrangle over the ISA's selection procedure for the 2004 Olympics.

Mansfield and Collins used an American Jenkins jib on the Hungarian lake which, they say, is proving very fast in flat water. Fast enough, it now appears, to have beaten 13 of the top 20 in the world rankings who attended Balaton.

On the east coast, members of the Royal St George Yacht Club gathered for a double celebration on Wednesday evening to salute the weekend achievements of separate club crews who brought international honours home to Dun Laoghaire.

In Douarnenez, France Johnny Ross-Murphy, Con Murphy and Ed Peel, won the Grand Prix Petit Navire de Douarnenez against a fleet of 93 Dragons that included the best Dragon sailors in one of France's top annual regattas.

"It's the best result I've ever had in any of the classes I've sailed," said Ross-Murphy, a long-time Laser and J24 campaigner and recent convert to the three-man Dragon, a former Olympic class.

Off Poole harbour, Dorset, the Royal St George's Sean Craig and Stephen Boyle won the Flying Fifteen British south coast championships.

Staying in Dun Laoghaire, Royal Irish Club officials confirmed at a reception this week attended by the Minister for the Arts, Sport and Tourism John O'Donoghue, that up to 50 boats are expected to compete over five days at the Alfa Romeo Sigma 33 European Championship starting on June 15th.