German sailors Ferdinand Gerz and Oliver Szymanski head the overall classification in the men’s 470 class after the first day of the 16th Semana Olímpica Canaria de Vela. The Canary Islands Olympic Sailing Week started on Friday in the bay of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and is organised by Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria.

With unbeatable weather conditions, winds of 15 to 20 knots increasing at the end of the morning and a 2 metre long wave, racing was under way in 470, Laser Standard and Laser Radial, RS:X 9.5 and 8.5, Nacra17, F-18 and the 2.4mR Paralympic class, which is included in this competition for the first time.

Laser Standard is led by local sailor Joaquín Blanco, who had a first and a sixth place in the two regattas held today.

Dutch sailor Benjamin Wempe has a two-second lead in the two Laser Radial heats raced today and is followed by five Spanish sailors.

Ecki and Tine-Marie Kaphengst are in the lead in Nacra 17, Joan C Cardona (Spain) took two firsts and a second in RS:X 9.5, giving him the overall lead, and the provisional leader in RS:X 8.5 is Holland’s Sam Wennekes.

The host club’s newly created Paralympic team heads the competition in 2.4mR: José Guerra took three firsts and Javier Ugarte took a fourth, a third and a second.

The 16th Canary Islands Olympic Sailing Week includes 215 sailors representing 24 countries, with a total of 165 boats. The entire Russian team is present (both the pre-Olympics and the youth team); Portugal has brought its Laser and 470 pre-Olympic teams; and Spain’s men’s and women’s 470, Laser Standard and women’s Laser Radial pre-Olympic teams are participating. Lithuania is represented by its Laser Standard and women’s Laser Radial pre-Olympic teams. Youth sailors from around 20 countries are also battling it out in various classes.

Translated from Spanih by Jane McGrath

The 16th Semana Olímpica Canaria de Vela had its official start on Thursday, when participants were welcomed by local authorities. Two hundred sailors from 23 countries will start racing on Friday with the promise of “very good winds”, in the words of Canary Islands Sailing Federation Chairman, Joaquín Blanco Roca.
Like the other authorities who took part in the short event, Óscar Bergasa, President of Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria, welcomed competitors by wishing them an enjoyable stay in Gran Canaria, saying he hoped they would enjoy the island’s gentle climate and the excellent conditions of the race area in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Mimi González, Councillor for Ciudad del Mar (Sea City), is one of the most closely involved participants in this Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria project, as it is part of her political mandate and she was also an Olympic sailor. González said she was very proud of this competition, the Canary Islands’ most important dinghy sailing event.
Alejandro Barrera (Chairman of the Gran Canaria Island Sailing Federation), Carlos Ester (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Sports Councillor), and RCNGC Commodore, Matías Gómez, also took part in the welcome ceremony.
The Semana Olímpica Canaria de Vela starts on Friday and finishes on Monday 8 December. It is sponsored by the Ayuntamiento de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (City Council) and the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, as well as private companies ANFI and Naviera Armas.

Translated from spanish by Jane McGrath

Santander 17/09/2014. Oscar Bergasa, President of Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria (RCNGC), presented the club’s winter sailing season at Santander 2014 on Wednesday.

The presentation of the Gran Canaria Sail in Winter programme was held at Santander’s conference centre, Palacio de Festivales, just metres from the hub of the Olympic Class Worlds. Attendants included Tony Ripoll and Guillerme Chiellino, managers of the Spanish and French Olympic sailing teams.

The teams from Iceland, Holland, Estonia, Turkey and Denmark were also represented at the event organised by the Gran Canarian club during the Santander 2014 Olympic Class World Championship.

In December, RCNGC will hold the 16^th Semana Olímpica Canaria de Vela (Canary Islands Olympic Sailing Week), which brings top teams and sailors from some 20 countries to Gran Canaria every year.

The warm winters on the island, excellent harbour conditions for dinghy sailing and the host club’s outstanding facilities have made the RCNGC winter season a classic on the international sailing calendar.

The Semana Olímpica Canaria de Vela (4-8 December) will be followed by Trofeo AECIO de Optimist – International Optimist AECIO Trophy (26-29 December), Trofeo Gran Canaria – International Gran Canaria Trophy (9-11 January 2015) and Regata de Carnaval – International Carnival Trophy (13-15 February 2015).

About 10 teams have already confirmed they’ll be taking part in the 2014-2015 season of Gran Canaria Sail in Winter, which offers sailors the chance to train on the water eight hours a day from November to February.

RCNGC representatives – president Óscar Bergasa, sports manager Francis Bautista, sailing committee member Bernardo Benítez and club secretary Karin Bumann – gave a detailed explanation of the options available for teams to ship their boats to Gran Canaria and stay on the island.

Photos:

• Óscar Bergasa, RCNGC president [centre], with the club’s sports manager, Francis Bautista, and office secretary, Karin Bumann, during the presentation at Santander’s Palacio de Festivales.

Marina Alabau , gold medal at the Olympics in London, holds the lead in the RS: X women after the second day of the International Carnival Regatta .
Again excellent sea and wind conditions, with about 15 knots from East , being able to compete all scheduled races and in most of them sailors excluding their worst result. In the RS: X Olympic gold Marina Alabau from Club Nautico de Sevilla won 2 first places in all three races and secured the first place . Excellent reaction of Ivan Pastor from the Nautical Club of Santa Pola , ranking first in the world , and who is third overall .
Canary domain in Laser class, both Joel Rodriguez in Standard, ahead of the Swedish Team, and Jesus Florez –Estrada in Radial, beating Finnish, Peruvians, Swedish and Norwegian and Luis Cabrera in 4.7, also in first place ahead of Norwegian and Finns.
The Russian team maintains hegemony in the 470 Class, the 29er class Norwegians and Germans in the Nacra 17 and Formula 18 classes. Tomorrow, Sunday, from 11 am, third and final day

You can see all pictures of the International Carnival Regatta on facebook

With good sea and wind conditions, the International Carnival Regatta began today Friday the 21st of February, fourth and last regatta of the Gran Canaria Sail in Winter Series, with over a hundred participants and under the organization of the Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria and the collaboration of the City of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

Domain of the Spanish in classes RS:X Women and Laser 4.7, Russian in 470, Norwegian in the 29er class, and German in the Nacra 17 and Formula 18 classes. In Laser Standard the Swedish are first.
Tomorrow, races will start from 11 am, in the two race courses , in front of the Cathedral for the Laser Class and up to San Cristobal for the Catamarans.

Álvaro del Busto, from the Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria is the new leader of the International AECIO Trophy, in which 170 participants from 5 countries and 6 regional governments are involved .
Yesterday, December 28 the second day was disputed with three tests in the Bay City. Steady northeast wind around 12 knots in the first two tests to climb to 18 knots in the third and last.
Álvaro del Busto scored a first , second and sixth in the three tests that goes into the lead with 12 points. Álvaro Valido is second , also of Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria. The best foreign remains the Finnish Elijah Odrischinsky, remaining in third place with 19 points.

You can see all pictures of the 28th AECIO Trophy on our facebook

Very nice Opening Ceremony of the International Aecio Trophy at the Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria where President D.Oscar Bergasa addressed some warm words of welcome to the sailors of the Optimist Class.
Later they were offered a snack organized by the parents and it was a success as always.

The sailor of the Real Club Náutico de Gran Canaria, Santi Ceballos and Alicia Aranaz from the Real Club Náutico de Tenerife were winners of the AECIO Trophy for beginners that RCNGC organized December 21-22.

With very unequal conditions between the two days of competition, the Race Committee of the two areas had a total of 4 races (3 on Saturday and 1 on Sunday).

Regarding Group C, the sailors could make the three scheduled races, in which the sailor Santi Ceballos made some great sets ( 2 – 1 – 1 – 1). He was followed by Pablo Quintana from the Sailing School Juan Carlos I. The podium was completed with the sailor from the Real Club Náutico de Tenerife, Mario Trujillo.

In relation to the “Arco Iris” Group and with the same number of races as above, the sailor of the Real Club Náutico de Tenerife Alicia Aranaz gave no options to her rivals and won the championship with a brilliant navigation ( 1 – 3 – 2 – 1) making very good rounds during the weekend . Second one was the sailor from the Sailing School Juan Carlos I, Pablo Torres and third was Sergio Armas also from the Real Club Náutico de Tenerife.