For the first time in the six-year history of the Bavaria Yachts International Youth Match Racing Regatta, a team from the Royal Selangor Yacht Club in Malaysia will join New Zealand and Australian crews for the five day regatta starting Wednesday 14 November 2007.
Two teams from the CYCA’s Youth Sailing Academy successfully completed their first foray into Asian match racing at the Selangor Gapurna International Youth Match Racing Championship in August, finishing first and third.
A close relationship between the two clubs was forged and now the CYCA, which is busily preparing for another of its international events, the Rolex Sydney Hobart, will extend its hospitality to the Malaysian team skippered by Ng Heng Li.
“The Malaysian youth team is very excited about coming to Sydney and having the opportunity to compete at a regatta of this level. They will arrive a few days early to acclimatise and spend time sight seeing in Sydney,” said regatta organiser Jenni Bonnitcha.
“Royal Selangor has only recently entered the match racing arena and this will strengthen their skill base and give them valuable regatta experience,” she added.
The 2006 Bavaria Yachts International Regatta winner, Evan Walker, is not defending the CYCA this year. Instead, that responsibility will fall on the broad shoulders of Will Ryan who recently won the Australian Youth Match Racing Championship in Hobart.
Will Mackenzie will steer the second CYCA boat and in line with the club’s policy of spreading the experience of sailing in a major regatta around, both with sail with new crew combinations.
Teams from the Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club, Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, Sandringham Yacht Club, Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron and the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club will also line up next week to try and wrestle the perpetual trophy from the CYCA, which has won it four years in a row.
Following a team welcome on Wednesday 14 November in the evening, racing will commence on Sydney Harbour the following morning. Each of the 10 teams will have a boat assigned from a draw every day for training and racing and coloured spinnakers will be assigned to each team for the duration of the regatta allowing spectators to easily follow the racing.
The courses will be standard match racing windward/leeward configuration. Each team will race each other team twice in the two round-robin format, followed by a semi-final and final series, scheduled for Sunday 18 November, ensuring a true test of match racing in all conditions.
This invitation event has been certified as a grade 3 event for the ISAF International Match Racing rankings and is for crews of three or four who have not reached their 21st birthday on or before 31 December 2007.
Click here for the full list of competing teams. – Lisa Ratcliff
