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A superb day's racing by young sailor Tom Burton has raised the possibility of the first Aussie one-two at a Laser world championships since 2006.
A brilliant day's racing from young-gun sailor Tom Burton has raised the distinct possibility of an Australian one-two at the Laser world championships in north Germany.
Burton, 21, rocketed eight places up the regatta leaderboard on Tuesday with second and sixth-placed finishes against a high-class fleet off Boltenhagen.
The Sydneysider, ranked world No.11, will now aim to leapfrog second-placed Croatian Tonci Stipanovic during the championship's remaining four races.
"I'm feeling pretty good, although I had a good day in qualifying and followed it up with a shocker the next day," a cautious Burton said.
"So I'm very aware of what can happen tomorrow."
Aussie world No.1 Tom Slingsby continued his seemingly inexorable march towards a fifth world Laser title.
He secured a race win and a 23rd-placed finish to extend his lead to 21 points - a huge advantage in sailing terms.
But he warned: "I can't afford any bad results from here on."
Australia's last one-two at the Laser worlds came in 2006 when Slingsby finished second to Michael Blackburn, who now coaches the Australian boy's team.
The Laser worlds end on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Australia's world No.1 team of Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen have moved up to third at the 49er skiff world championships in Croatia.
The pairing had a consistent day with third, fifth and second-placed finishes.
Outteridge is aiming to become the first sailor to win four 49er world titles.