WEYMOUTH’S Izzy Hamilton finished fifth at the RS:X European Championships in Helsinki, Finland.

She took on the fleet of almost 50 of the world’s top female windsurfers.

The race course was positioned in a small bay in front of Helsinki city with the wind blowing from the direction of the buildings.

It made the wind direction change frequently and gave gusts of wind which were difficult to predict.

For the duration of the racing, the wind strength was light and Hamilton found the conditions physically demanding.

The 23-year-old said: “The event was exhausting, three long races every day working at sprint pace was tough.

“I have been the training partner for our Olympic windsurfer, Bryony Shaw and this was the first event that I was released from my training partner duties and able to focus on myself.

“I finished fifth, a result I am really proud of especially as I usually favour the windy conditions, as you would expect from training in windy Weymouth.”

At an international level of competition, an intense training regime is vital.

She added: “If I am building up to a competition, I spend 2-3 hours on the water every day, 1-2 hours in the gym and the rest of the time resting, recovering and planning trips.

“In between competitions, I can spend up to four hours on the water and much more time in the gym.”

She first started windsurfing in Cornwall at age 11 and enjoyed going to the local lake to meet friends at the weekend.

She started racing at local events and was talent spotted and asked to join the National Team.

Now she spends her time training in Weymouth, racing around the World and relaxing in Cornwall.

She hopes to take part in as many World Tour events as possible with her ultimate ambition being to win a medal in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

The next event on her calendar will be a test event in Tokyo in October.

Competing at such a high level requires support and she remarked: “I would like to say a thank you to Weymouth Basepoint who have supported me in the past and South West Water and the British Sailing Team who are my current sponsors.”