Will Jones

Biography

Will Jones is the skipper of the 49er, a two-handed skiff. He made his Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020, with crewmate Evan DePaul, finishing 19th.

Following DePaul’s retirement in the fall of 2022, Jones teamed up with Justin Barnes to compete at the World Sailing Championships Test Event in The Hague, Netherlands. Encouraged by their performance, they decided to continue competing together. In early 2023, they placed ninth at the US Open Sailing Series in Miami, followed by a fourth-place finish at the US Open Sailing Series in Clearwater. The latter result qualified them for the Santiago 2023 Pan Am Games where they secured a bronze medal and a quota spot for Canada in the 49er for Paris 2024. They earned that Olympic spot for themselves by topping the Canadian standings after two selection regattas. Jones and Barnes were also the top Canadian 49er crew at both the 2023 Sailing World Championships and 2024 49er and 49er FX World Championships.

Early in his career, Jones had raced solo in the C420 and Laser Radial before being attracted to the challenge presented by the skiff class. He first teamed up with DePaul in the summer of 2015 to race in the 49er FX, before moving into the 49er in 2016. Just a year later, they won gold at the 2017 Junior World Championship held at their home training centre in Kingston, Ontario.

Jones and DePaul laid claim to Canada’s Tokyo 2020 spot in the 49er by being the top Canadian boat at the 2020 World Championships for the class. They improved upon their best ever result at worlds by more than 20 spots, a culmination of their efforts to work on their weaknesses as a lot of small pieces came together.

While attending Queen’s University, Jones represented the school in multiple regattas, which included a victory with his team at the 2016 Student Yachting world Cup in La Rochelle, France.

A Little More About Will

Getting into the Sport: Joined a learn-to-sail program at age 10… Competed in his first regatta in 2008 when he was 13… Began racing in the 49er in 2016 when he was 21… Outside Interests: Graduated from Queen’s University in 2018 with a Bachelor of Applied Science… Enjoys playing squash, skiing, rowing… Odds and Ends: Superstitions include not shaving during a competition and wearing mismatched socks for good luck…