Triumph for former Welwyn Garden City yachtswoman

WGC, like the landlocked Americas Cup-winning nation of Switzerland, is fast emerging as an unlikely breeding ground for top class yachtsmen – and women.

Last week, we reported on WGC businessman David Brannen and how he was part of the team which won the Arc Royal Ocean Racing Club’s Atlantic sailing race, just before Christmas.

And the Welwyn Hatfield Times can now reveal that Debra Noble, who grew up in WGC, was part of the team which finished third in the SAME event.

Mum-of-two Debra, who started her sailing career at Stanborough Lakes, was the only female member of the crew of the 40ft yacht Lancelot.

The 48-year-old, who battled waves of up to 18m during her voyage, said: “It was terrifying – especially sailing at night at high speed with a huge spinnaker up.”

Her father Derek Dewey-Leader, founder commodore of WGC Sailing Club, said: “It just goes to show what a small pond racer can achieve in a bigger ocean and what a great facility youngsters have at Stanborough.”