Dream Yacht Charter sponsor Optimist Worlds in Antigua this July
by Amanda Monroe 20 Jun 2019 18:00 BST
6-16 July 2019
Dream Yacht Charter has today announced that it will be sponsoring the 2019 IODA Optimist World Championships, taking place in Antigua this July.
Optimist is the biggest youth racing class in the world and sees young sailors aged 8 to 15 racing single handed sailing dinghies. It is one of the few sports which sees boys and girls competing evenly against each other.
The event will run from July 6-16 2019 and is set to attract young sailors from 64 countries, including a GBR team, all competing for the title of Optimist World Champion.
Paola Vittoria - Head of the 2019 Organising Committee commented "We are delighted that Dream Yacht Charter have become our latest partner for Antigua 2019. This event is particularly special as it's breaking the world record for the number of countries competing in a single class regatta as we welcome 64 countries to the small island of Antigua. The support from Dream Yacht Charter means we are able to provide catamaran fleet accommodation for some of the teams as well as two committee boats which will give the volunteers out on the water all day a luxurious and comfortable base from which to operate."
Amongst the competitors are a team representing Great Britain. GBR Optimist Lead Coach Sarah McGovern said "We have a team of five boys (Kuba, Henry, Ben, Terry and Finian) competing at the Optimist World Championships this year. They are incredibly excited to be able to race in Antigua as we hear it is a windy venue which the Brit's love. The team were even more excited to hear that we would be staying on a Lagoon 42 Catamaran provided by Dream Yacht Charter. An incredible experience to add to an already incredible event. For most of the team it is their first World Championships, they will be focusing on their processes and hopefully the results will follow. The Team will also be joined by Team Leader Jen Williams who will be at her 8th Optimist Worlds."
Dream Yacht Charter's involvement reinforces the company's commitment to supporting grass-roots sailing and the next generation of sailors. Andy Byham, Director of Dream Yacht Charter UK said "The Optimist class of racing is a great introduction to sailing for young people. We already work closely with youth charity Oarsome Chance who help disadvantaged children through water and land based activities, and it's great to see the enjoyment and benefit that young people get from spending time on and around the water. I'm sure the Optimist World Championships will be a highly competitive event and I'm sure we'll see some future Olympians and round the world sailors in the making. I wish all the teams competing the very best of luck."
For more on the IODA Optimist World Championship go to 2019worlds.optiworld.org; To learn more about Oarsome Chance, visit OarsomeChance.org.