The Countdown begins to the RS500 World Championships 2014
by Heather Chipperfield 13 Jul 2014 12:04 BST
5-9 August 2014
The 2014 RS500 Worlds will be held at Le cercle nautique de Loctudy in Brittany © Le cercle nautique de Loctudy
With less than four weeks to go until the RS500 World Championships at Cercle Nautique de Loctudy, in Brittany – France, we are extremely excited that entrants are already up to 50 boats for the event.
The event has been inundated with entries in the last couple of days from France, Italy, Sweden and Great Britain, with we hope more to follow in the final run up to the Championships. The Netherlands have the strongest team entry with 16 boats in total, followed by Great Britain with 12 and 11 from France. This is exciting news for the host nation who didn't enter last years Worlds in Sweden.
The event starts with a training day on Monday 4th, providing a valuable opportunity for competitors who have not yet raced against boats from other nations to meet each other and exchange technique info before racing gets underway on Tuesday 5th, concluding with prize giving on Saturday 9th August.
Early entry opportunity fee closes on Monday 14th July and the pre-worlds coaching will need to be booked with entry.
Loctudy situated in western Brittany boasts wonderful sea sailing and blissful launching from a sandy beach. In true RS Style, the RS500 Worlds promises to be as eventful socially as it does on the water, with the week kicking off with the Welcome BBQ on the beach outside the club. Midweek sees the most competitive event of the championship – the Petanque and Breton Games Tournament followed by the Thursday night '500 likes' Party at the Clubhouse.
The week concludes with the Championship Meal and Prizegiving on the final evening to round off what will be a spectacular week. Other highlights of the event surrounding the racing include the opportunity to go sailing on board an ocean-crossing trimaran and on a Nacra catamaran with foils. Vincenet Riou, winner of the Vendee Globe will also entertain with a talk one evening.
Heather Chipperfield, on behalf of the International RS500 Class Association commented; "The RS500 Class are delighted to be sailing in the RS500 stronghold of France, in such a delightful venue. The racing is set to be exciting and demanding, and the socials up to the high standard the RS500s have set over the years."
You can follow the results for the RS500 Worlds via www.RS500.org and also find full information about the boat and the international distribution network at www.RSsailing.com