Bermuda Optimist Sailors Competing In Italy
Following on from the success of the World Record breaking sailing regatta in Lake Garda, Italy last Easter, 6 young Bermuda Optimist sailors from the RBYC Sailing Academy are joining 1,300 other Optimist sailors from 31 countries in what promises to be another World Record breaking Regatta.
The Optimist World Championships is to be held at Riva del Garda later this summer and many of the world’s top sailors are making the most of this opportuity to get in much needed practice at one fo the worlds favourite sailing venues. Bermuda’s Thomas and Adriana Penruddocke, Campbell Patton, Yannick Hillier, Luke Madeiros and Matilda Nicholls will be rejoining the RBYC Sailing Academy guest Olympian Coach Zizi Staniul and will be coached alongside several top sailors of Europe and further afield.
Matilda Nicholls practicing in Garda:
One of the sailor’s parents said “After the enormous success of 2012, the Garda Optimist Regatta 2013 was such an obvious regatta for Bermuda’s young sailors to try to attend, it is the world’s leading Optimist Regatta and offers a totaly unique experience for all who attend. It will not surprise me if the 2013 Optimist World Champion will come from one of the sailors getting in the practice at Garda this Easter. The group of sailors going repeatedly show such promise for their age, the coaching they have received at the Sailing Academy this winter will have prepared them well for this huge regatta.”
BHS pupil Matilda Nicholls (11) will be the 2nd youngest competitor in the 1000 boat Juniores fleet, it is an example of the huge challenge these kids are about to undertake. Matilda and Warwick Academy’s Yannick Hillier arrived in Riva del Garda at the weekend and have been training with the best sailors from Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Poland and Great Britain. Tomorrow they will also be joining the top sailors from Denmark. “It has been such fun to gain so much experience here in Europe, we are realy looking forward to our other Bermuda sailors joining us on Wednesday and the first race on Thursday.”
It has been a very cold start to the week, but the sailors have not had time to think about the temperature; Coach Zizi always starts the day with a run up the steep Garda mountains to warm up. Matilda commented “It was snowing up there this morning, but we were so hot after the running we did not notice the cold!”
