Young Bequia sailors give good account against strong competition

Three brave young sailors are now back in Bequia after representing St Vincent and the Grenadines at the annual St Lucia Dinghy Regatta.{{more}}

Drew Mitchell, 8, Oshaun Hazel, 11 and Oreakay Joseph, 13, along with their coaches Andrew Mitchell and Eddie Brown, all members of the Bequia Youth Sailors Club, left the shores of Bequia on June 6, with their optimist sailboats onboard a Sunsail Yacht, for an eight-hour journey to St Lucia.

The Youth Regatta was organized by the St Lucia Yacht Club and was held on June 8 and 9 in Rodney Bay. Participants came from France, Martinique, Guadeloupe and St Lucia. The children took part in the Benjamin Optimist and Optimist category, but came under stiff competition from the French and St Lucia sailors which saw France dominating the races.

Andrew Mitchell, managing director of the BYSC said “our kids are very competitive, and have won races at several regattas; however, this time they were faced with strong competition; they came up against three of France’s best sailors”. He said “despite they placed 7th and 9th, they learnt valuable skills and tricks and the entire experience was worthwhile; they need more coaching and have to spend more time sailing”.

Mitchell is hoping to get assistance for the club to acquire a Laser Boat, which will enable the kids that are over 16 to compete in races and at the Olympics in Italy. He extended a big thanks all the sponsors for their assistance to the club.

The Bequia Youth Sailors started in 2011 and have trained over 300 children to sail. They will be competing in Carriacou waters this August. Last year they came out as winners after they defeated the Carriacou and Grenada teams. They are also set to challenge the French teams again in Martinique next year.