The Youth Centenary Regatta will be the season opener for Fraglia Vela Riva
Riva del Garda – Approximately three hundred people have registered for the sixth edition of the Youth Centenary Regatta-Trofeo Faccenda, a classic early-season event hosted by Fraglia Vela Riva and reserved for Optimist class specialists. This year, the event has once again received the support of Cantiere Navale Faccenda, a global leader in Optimist production.
Chosen by the competitive teams of the Czech Republic, Switzerland, and Hungary as a selection regatta to define the teams for the World Championship (June 18-28 in Tangier, Morocco) and the European Championship (July 24-31 in Gdynia, Poland), the Youth Centenary Regatta-Trofeo Faccenda will serve as a refresher course for participants after the long winter break. A resumption that will lead directly into the week of the 44th Garda Optimist Meeting, which as usual features a solid series of events, including the Sprint Race, an elimination regatta introduced last year, the twelfth Country Cup, and the Meeting itself, which is expected to draw over a thousand sailors from at least thirty-five nations.
The Notice of Race reveals that nine races are scheduled, at least four of which will be held during the two opening days (March 6-7) and will be used to determine the composition of the Gold, Silver, and Bronze fleets. The Youth Centenary Regatta will conclude on Sunday, March 8, with the decisive races to determine the winners of the Cadet and Junior groups.
“For fifteen years now, the Youth Centenary Regatta has opened our competitive season, an event that has grown in size and, consequently, in prestige. The smaller number of participants compared to the Garda Meeting makes it the ideal event to be used as a selection test by those National Teams that do not have adequate sea lanes or inland waters,” explains Andrea Camin, president of Fraglia Vela Riva. “More generally, this event kicks off a varied series of competitive events that, between March and November, will bring sailors of all ages from every corner of the world to the northern shore of Lake Garda. The highlight of the season will be the ILCA Europa Cup, which, in June, will bring over seven hundred specialists from this popular Olympic class to Fraglia Vela Riva, including many of the discipline’s top performers.”
One of the most anticipated moments of the event will be the lottery which, following the awards ceremony, will award a hull produced by the Faccenda Shipyard to one lucky young athlete.
