News

UAE, Abu Dhabi 23 October 2023: Abu Dhabi Marine Sports Club is hosting the Optimist Asian & Oceanian Championship 2023, in cooperation with the Asian and Emirates Modern Sailing and Rowing Federations, and the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, and it is the first time that competitions are held in the Emirates.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Marine Sports Club, welcomed the guests coming from various parts of the world to participate in the global event, and said: The presence and participation of the large number of countries and continents of the world in the tournament confirms its success before it begins. It gives us a strong technical indication of the expected superiority of the competition, especially with the presence of this number of participants representing 28 countries.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan said: “We wish the representatives of the Emirates in the tournament to present the distinguished image of Optimist in the country, to compete for the first places, and to succeed, in the end, in raising the national flag, as part of the strong international participation in the tournament.”
Sheikh Mohammed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan stressed the club’s role in organizing modern sailing races, and said: “Abu Dhabi Club is one of the most important partners in organizing international sailing competitions, and it also plays a fundamental role through its academy in developing the modern sailing system and raising it to higher levels”.
The Asian Championship is considered one of the important tournaments on the AFC map, due to the great strength that the tournament enjoys, and the great turnout and strong participation, through this event, and the numbers come in the 2023 round, to consolidate the technical strength of the tournament with high participation numbers, as 28 countries participate with 170 competitors and sailors. In all event categories.
The participants in the tournament are the best segment of competitors in the world in the Optimist category
The event is held as part of the celebration of the fiftieth year of the International Optimist Organization “Ayuda”, which is considered an essential category in the world of sailing, and over the past years has been the main source for teaching children from 7 to 15 years the basics of sailing, and learning to drive Optimist boats. It is worth noting that the number of countries registered within the “Ayuda” organization reaches 110 countries.
The UAE, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Oman, Taipei, China, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, South Africa, Britain, Belgium, Brazil, Italy, America, France, Libya, Turkey, Sweden, Tajikistan, Malaysia are participating in the event. , Argentina and Spain.
The tournament rules allow the participation of countries outside the Asian system, as well as countries included in the “Ayuda” organization.
Arrival date :
The arrival of delegations participating in the tournament is scheduled to begin on October 21, and the arrival will continue until the start of the tournament. Races will be held daily until the end, with the next day being the time for the teams and delegations to leave and the tournament to end.
The UAE is represented by 9 participants, on behalf of the Optimist team, with the ambition of providing ideal representation, and trying to reach the podium and first places through the “huge challenge.”