MUSCAT: Oman Sail’s sailing team has concluded their participation at the 11th GCC Sailing Championships after claiming the highest number of medals out of all participating nations.
The championship was held at Messilah Beach in Kuwait from March 22-26.
The Omani entry is the first regional tournament for the young Optimist sailors, who were joined by
experienced ILCA sailors to together claim seven podium positions.
Medals were won by: Hood al Nofali, silver (Optimist U12); Tameem al Balushi, silver, and Abdullatif al Qasmi, bronze (Optimist); Nebras al Owaisi, silver, and Elyas al Fadhli, bronze (ILCA 4); Ahmed al Balushi, bronze (ILCA 6); Abdulmalik al Hinai, bronze (ILCA 7).
Sultan AbdulAziz al Zadjali, Optimist Coach, said, “This was a great performance from our young sailors in their first regional competition. We have worked hard behind the scenes to prepare them for the event and to return to Oman with so many medals is really pleasing. This is a very strong group of sailors and they will definitely learn from this challenge as they continue to improve and gain experience on the water.”
He added, “It is inspiring to see the youth of the country embrace the sport of sailing and
reinforce Oman’s maritime heritage. The achievements of this very young Oman Sail team
shows that the future of sailing in Oman is promising and that the nation’s youth is both
highly-capable and highly-motivated to fulfil their considerable potential.”
The 11th GCC Sailing Championships featured a total of 57 sailors from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates raced over four days in five classes. The team will now return to Oman to practice and prepare for the upcoming IODA, taking place in South Korea from April 29 to May 6.
