Young sailors prepare to set sail for the NSSA National Youth Regatta
by Will Burchnall, NSSA 5 Jul 2012 09:00 BST
9-15 July 2012
Five action-packed days of youth dinghy racing begins on Monday 9th July at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy.
A record breaking 500 boats and over 650 competitors from across the country will converge on the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy in preparation for the National School Sailing Association's (NSSA) Golden Jubilee Regatta (9th to 15th July).
The annual regatta, which is the premier event on the NSSA's Youth Racing calendar, kicks off on the 9th July and will welcome the largest number of sailors it has ever seen in the event's history. A staggering 650 dinghy racers are set to take part in the last event, to be held at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy before the London Olympic Games organisers take over and it becomes the venue for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic sailing events.
Paul Goodison, ex-NSSA sailor and 2008 Beijing Olympics Gold medallist in the Laser class, commented: "I want to wish all the sailors who are competing at the NSSA Youth Nationals in Weymouth the best of luck. Weymouth is such a great location, the sailing is awesome and I have no doubt the regatta will be a huge success. The National School Sailing Association was a good stepping stone and preparation for my progression into Olympic Sailing with great sailing events and great fun too!"
2012 will be the largest regatta the association has ever staged and, with it being also being its 50th regatta, there will be a number of special events taking place during the week to highlight the work of the NSSA and its local clubs around the country. There will also be some very special guests, most notably HRH The Princess Royal who will be visiting on the opening day of the regatta to meet some of the competitors and also watch the racing from the water. Monday will also see the final leg of the School to School Torch Relay which finishes at the National Sailing Academy with the torch being handed over to a group of NSSA sailors along with a book of friendship messages.
The Olympic Torch Relay is also coming to visit us on Thursday 12th July, arriving at WPNSA and making its way to the water through an avenue of sail before sailing out across Weymouth Bay accompanied by two of our young competitors.
Day one of racing is set to commence at 10:30am on Monday 9th with three races scheduled for all classes. More information on the event, photos, videos and the latest news is available from the NSSA website visit www.nssa.org.uk follow us on Twitter or find us on Facebook (see Facebook/Twitter tab below).