Opti World Championships - Week 1 and Day 1 of Racing
The Canada Team participating in the World Championships in Italy arrived in Sardinia early to commence training on Wed July 18th. It took a while for the team to get the charters sorted out but all worked out and in the end our coach Orestes Reyes was able to get in some training on the water on the first day.
The championship is being held just outside of the city of Cagliari on the island of Sardinia which is part of Italy. The island has breathtaking views of the hills in the interior, sandy beaches and the deep blue colour of the Mediterranean Sea.
The Regatta site is a sailing center with plenty of space for the competitors. We are getting used to the laid back Italian culture on the Island and we are all getting a chance to learn some Italian.
Four of the sailors took advantage of the early training (Jacob, Dominic, Emily and Paul). Orestes worked with them everyday. The winds were light during the week of training ranging from 5 to 10 knots each day which would fill in by 1 pm. Many teams arrived early to join in on the daily training. The Canada team trained with a number of top teams including the Singapore and Peru teams. Great experience for them!
Simon arrived on Saturday the 22nd and we were finally a full team. Measurement went smoothly with the help of a little bit of gear swapping and blue ink.
The opening Ceremonies was held at the Yacht Club Cagliari and was quite the event with 242 sailors from more than 50 Countries. The ceremony was followed by yummy Italian fare and some early hat trading.
The practice race was held on Tuesday July 25th and everyone was surprised by a change in the wind conditions. In a matter of minutes the conditions moved from no wind and a postponement to a 20 to 25 knot wind with sunny and bright blue skies.
The wind continued into day 1 of racing with 20+ knot winds. Two races were sailed as planned. Check the IODA site for results.
Day 2 has three races planned and continuing strong winds are expected.
Ciao
Anne