The duo of Belcher and Ryan has now been formally christened with no less than a World Championship. Belcher who won a gold medal in London with former team mate Malcolm Page has now extended his winning streak to 17 straight regattas, and four straight World Championships. There is no doubt they are in a league of their own. With Will Ryan taking over from Page the pair went into the eight-boat medal race seven points ahead of the second placed Greek team with the final race held in moderate conditions in La Rochelle.

“It’s a bit surreal to win four World Championships in a row and wasn’t something that I had thought too much about before,” said Belcher. “It’s unbelievable how quickly Will and I have stepped up to the level that Mal and I had.

 “It’s a real credit to Will, I was quite relaxed this week having been in this position a number of times before but this is his first World Championship win,” he said. “He was very calm during the critical moments on the water and I’m really happy that I can share this moment with him.” said Belcher.

The pair now looks forward to some time off before getting back into the boat to prepare for the Australian season. Congratulations to them both from Zhik on an amazing result.