Ryan Seaton & Matt McGovern secure third Irish boat for Rio

Northern Ireland's sailors Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern have secured the qualification of a third Irish boat for the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

Competing at the World Championships in Santander, the Irish duo lie sixth and are guaranteed to secure qualification ahead of Saturday's Gold Fleet race.

The top 10 nations at the event are guaranteed to earn a Rio berth and the Irish duo will achieve this feat.

Carrickfergus man Seaton and Bangor's McGovern compete in the 49er class.

The Northern Irish duo have been competing against 79 other boats in Northern Spain.

Earlier in the week, Bangor man James Espey and Dubliner Annalise Murphy secured qualification for two Irish boats in the Laser Standard and Laser Radial classes.

Espey, Murphy, Seaton and McGovern are not guaranteed to be the Irish competitors in Rio.

The qualification process merely secures Olympic spots for the nations involved rather than the individual sailors.

However, Seaton and McGovern don't appear to have any realistic rivals for Ireland's 49er berth in Brazil.

The Northern Ireland duo competed in the event at the London Olympics where they finished a creditable 14th.