North Wales harbours some of the most promising sporting talent in the world; a fact confirmed by the triumphant achievements of two UK sailing champions from Anglesey.

Bleddyn Mon, 16, and Tom Humphries, 17 capped off a great season by retaining the 29er Class National Championship*, at Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy in August. A result that seals a great 2008 season for the Anglesey pair who scooped silver medals at the World Championships in Australia, a silver medal at the European Championships in Holland and a bronze in the UK Youth Championships held in Pwllheli.

The pair are picking up accolades on dry land too, claiming the Welsh Young Sailor Award for the second year running to put themselves in contention for the Royal Yachting Association Young Sailor of the Year award.

Mon and Humphries were thrilled with their achievements this season and are upbeat about their continued success both as a team and eventually as individuals.

Mon said, "It was a great feeling to win (the National Championship) for the second time especially after we put together such a solid series of results through the week.

"Next year our main goal is to win the 29er World Championships in Lake Garda, Italy. Then personally I am aiming to gain a place on the Olympic Transitional Squad either in the 470 or the 49er. My ultimate ambition is to win a gold medal at the Olympics."

Humphries added, "It had been one of our goals all year (to win the National Championships) so it was a great feeling to achieve it after building up to the event for so long and I think we were the first team to win consecutive titles. At both events we have had conditions that suited us. But in this year’s championships we had to deal with a much wider range of conditions and seemed to be the same pace in them all, which is always good news.

"This year is mainly focused on winning the World Championships in Italy. Last year’s Worlds were very much about experience and we were chuffed to come away with such a good result. This year we will be aiming to put our experience into play as we won’t be the new guys on the block any more. Following the Worlds I will be looking to gain a place in the 49er Olympic Development Squad."

The close knit pair clearly thrive in each other’s company, having competed together for years and cite their strongest feature as a team is their ability to constantly learn from each other.

Humphries said, "Spending a lot of time with each other, we get to know one another’s strengths and weaknesses really well, which allows us to maintain some sort of balance when it comes to events. Everyone has different ways of dealing with pressure and we learn from each other a lot, which I think is the main key to progressing in a double hander."

Mon adds, "We really enjoy campaigning the 29er together and believe that we learn a lot from each other. It can be hard at times, especially in competitions when the pressure is on but both of us have our strengths that allow us to deal with these situations."

Both admit that being based in North Wales can have its disadvantages, such as the considerable time it takes to travel to and from UK Sailing’s headquarters in Weymouth. But support from the Welsh Yachting Association and the Sports Council for Wales goes a long way towards bridging the gap and helping them to achieve their lofty ambitions.

Mon explains, "One of the main problems with being an athlete in North Wales is that we often have to travel long distances to get to competitions and trainings which are usually on the South coast. As well as being time consuming this is also very expensive. But the Logistical Disadvantage Fund, Talent Support and Boat Provision Scheme from the Sports Council for Wales helps us to compete at the highest level."

Humphries added, "I spend a lot of my time in a car at the weekends! We are normally at the South coast either training or competing. But, being an athlete in North Wales gives us access to the WYA and Sports Council's support to help us plan and achieve our goals. Without the support we have had we could never have had the same success."

Welsh Yachting Association (WYA) Director of Sailing, Tim Hall said,

"Bleddyn and Tom are both 17-years-old at the moment and this will be their last year in the youth class, so the two of them are looking to go out on a high before moving up to Olympic class. The age profile for Olympic sailors is higher than in other sports. So the majority of this year’s Olympic team will still be in place come 2012. It is not only about physical fitness but experience counts highly in this sport. However Bleddyn and Tom are two of our brightest hopes for the future and I think they have the potential to compete at Olympic level."

Bleddyn comes from a family rich in yachting pedigree, with older brothers Dyfrig and Eifion both in the Olympic Development Squad, competing in the Laser Class and father David Griffiths sits on the WYA Board of Directors. Eifion, 19, recently had a taste of what it takes to compete at Olympic level after travelling to Beijing with the Olympic Ambition Programme. He was given the opportunity to stay at the Olympic Village and mix with Team GB’s sailing team to get some experience of large scale championships.

With Pwllheli confirmed as an official training venue for the London 2012 Games, and the continued success of Humphries and the Mon brothers, the future of North Wales sailing looks very bright indeed.