Harry Price, Christophe Killian headline field for 52nd Governor’s Cup

As a high-profile international youth match racing competition, the Governor’s Cup demands a world-class fleet.

Balboa Yacht Club will host the event from July 16-21, with the belief that it has accomplished that goal.

“We believe from top to bottom, the talent this year is the best ever,” BYC Selection Committee Chairman Bill Wakeman said in a press release. “I believe the sport’s governing body, World Sailing, would agree.”

Headliners coming into the event include Harry Price (Cruising Yacht Club of Australia) and Christophe Killian (Balboa Yacht Club). The two 21-year-olds will be looking to become the 11th two-time winner of the event.

“Winning two Governor’s Cups is clearly better than winning one, but I think the real prize is the three-peat,” said Killian, the defending champion of the regatta. “I am overall just glad to be sailing, though, and it’ll be nice to spend some time back at home.”

Sailors must be no older than 22 years old to compete. One might ascertain from Killian’s comments that the reigning Governor’s Cup champion hopes to not only win this year, but also to avoid being caught by Price in their last year of eligibility.

Killian ended a 37-year drought for the host club last year in capturing the Governor’s Cup for Balboa Yacht Club.

In spite of being the most recent winner of the Governor’s Cup, Killian stated that he believed he was just one of several competitors that the field would be looking to score upsets against.

“As far as the target on my back, I think Leonard [Takahashi] and Harry [Price] have just as big a target to deal with,” Killian said. “I don’t think any of us are clear favorites yet, and who knows what might happen.”

The World Sailing open match racing rankings dictate that Price is the skipper to beat. He has climbed the latter to claim the top spot in the match racing rankings. Price (9,440 points) leads Taylor Canfield (9,146 points) in the race for the world No. 1 ranking. Canfield will not be part of the Governor’s Cup.

Takahashi finished as the runner-up to Killian in last year’s match racing regatta. He is ranked 20th in the world. Takahashi and James Wilson both hail from the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron.

Price’s Australian countryman Will Boulden (Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club) comes to the Governor’s Cup as the world’s 16th-ranked match-racing sailor.

The United States will also have Christopher Weis of Los Angeles’ Del Rey Yacht Club and David Wood in the Governor’s Cup.

Weis took third place in the Governor’s Cup last year, and he has reached the semifinals in each of his last two starts at the event.

Wood draws into the competition as the youngest sailor at age 17. The defending U.S. Youth Match Racing Champion was chosen to represent the Balboa Yacht Club. As the founder and host of the Governor’s Cup, the Balboa Yacht Club was allowed to extend one invitation.

The up-and-coming Wood impressed some of the more established skippers in his first Governor’s Cup last year. He took seventh place, and he led Price in both of their round-robin races before the Australian prodigy rallied for victory.

Other competitors at this year’s Governor’s Cup include Clare Costanzo (Australia’s Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club), Scott Sinks (San Diego Yacht Club), Matt Whitfield (Great Britain) and Felix Jacobsen (Denmark).

This will be the 52nd annual Governor’s Cup, but the boats in the competition will not have spent nearly as much time out at sea. Balboa Yacht Club’s “GovCup 22” sloops will be put to the test.

Designed by former Balboa Yacht Club Commodore Alan Andrews, the boats were first used in 2016.

andrew.turner@latimes.com

Twitter: @ProfessorTurner