Auckland Noumea Race cancelled due to political unrest in New Caledonia
by Royal Akarana Yacht Club 23 May 2024 03:22 BST
Auckland Noumea Race 2024 has been cancelled © RAYC
Royal Akarana Yacht Club, hosts of the Auckland Noumea Yacht Race in conjunction with Cercle Nautique Calédonien (CNC), have announced that the event due to commence on Saturday 25th May has been cancelled.
The last-minute withdrawal from running the 990nm race was a forced decision due to the civil unrest unfolding in the capital of New Caledonia, the finishing location for the Auckland Noumea Yacht Race.
On Thursday, 16th May 2024, Past Commodore and Race Director Sally Garrett formally decided, in conjunction with current Commodore Nick Hanson and the RAYC Offshore Committee, that the race would be cancelled.
“We have been watching the events unfold, and while actions are being taken on the island with a call for calm, the safety of our sailors and volunteers is first and foremost our main priority,” said Garrett.
“One of our entrants, Poulpito, is from Noumea and is currently on their passage to Auckland for the race. We also have Awen at sea, in the middle of completing their qualifying passage. Up until just four days ago, we were on track to host the race, with the YB trackers having also arrived from the UK, which were to be fitted to each yacht,” continued Garrett.
RAYC is committed to returning to Noumea and to supporting CNC in the future. We hope that the CNC team and the families of competitors in Noumea remain safe and that we can reunite with them soon.
“We aren’t giving up, but it is getting harder to host these types of events – our committee will work hard over the next few months and present offshore racing options to the fleet,” said Garrett.