Congratulations to Old Cranbrookian and sailor Freya Black (Class of 2019) who is on her way to representing Team GB at Paris 2024. She's set to sail for Great Britain in the 49erFX class, joining forces with the seasoned Olympian Saskia Tidey. Freya said:

“Getting selected for my first Olympic Games is surreal. I’m so happy and proud of what Saskia [Tidey] and I have put together in the last year and a half to make this happen. We will be pushing hard over the winter in hope of achieving a medal next year.”

Their commendable fifth-place finish at The Hague's Sailing World Championships paved the way for Britain's Olympic berth. Freya, at just 22, is buoyant about their chances of clinching a medal in Marseille the following year.

“We’ve been improving at a rapid rate, at the last World Championships we came ninth and this Worlds we came fifth. We’re just hoping the upward trajectory that we’re on can continue. We feel that we’ve got a lot of areas that we can really progress in and make big jumps as a team.”

Previously crowned a junior European and national victor, Freya momentarily set aside her academic pursuits at the University of Exeter to chase the Olympic dream. Engaged in studying philosophy and politics, she'll soon be trading the familiar shores of Dawlish Warren Beach for the unpredictable waves of Marseille.

Congratulations again to Freya for her remarkable achievement! We wish her the best of luck as she continues her journey toward the Olympics and representing Team GB with pride. You can read the official Team GB annoucement here.