(L-R) Liu Haiyuan from China, Marina Vilchinskaia from Russia, Christian Fardel from France, Shin Moon-sub from South Korea, and Tafadzwa Kadere from the U.K. pose for a photo before boarding the EyeShenzhen sailboat for a training in Bao'an District yesterday. They are among the six-member crew of the boat, which is named after Shenzhen's multilingual portal EyeShenzhen and will compete in the first World Bay Area Regatta. Led by Fardel, a 68-year-old seasoned sailor, the crew include three Shenzhen Global Communication Ambassadors. Courtesy of the crew
Under cloudy skies and intermittent sunshine and amid mild winds, crew members of 12 standout teams competing in the 2023 World Match Racing Tour (WMRT), a global top-tier sailing race, set out for the finals in Bao'an District yesterday.
The final series, spanning five days, drew many spectators to witness the exhilarating competitions.
This regatta features a lineup of seasoned match racers and former world champions from nine countries. The stakes are high as the winner of the event will be awarded a portion of the US$200,000 purse.
This year's finals represent WMRT's debut in Bao'an and second time in Shenzhen since the last finals in 2017.
"Having events in Asia is not something we've done much in the past, and there's real opportunity here, bringing sailing to Asia, particularly to China, amid growing appeal and interest in sailing," James Pleasance, executive director of WMRT, said Tuesday. "We're looking forward to a really exciting week, in a new venue, presenting new challenges for the sailors as well."
Johnny Berntsson, helming the Berntsson Sailing Team from Sweden and currently ranked No. 2 in the Leaderboard of World Match Racing Tour, shared his enthusiasm.
"Shenzhen is a really good place for match racing. It's perfect to have it in the middle of the city, which is not possible in all other cities," he said. "I hope that hosting this world championship here will encourage more Chinese sailors to engage in match racing."
Megan Thompson, leading the 2.0 Racing team from New Zealand and ranked No. 4 in the Women's Match Race Rankings worldwide, is the only female competitor in the tour.
"All the competitors are top-notch, making this the world's premier match race," she said. "My goal is to finish every race and learn from each race."
Hugo Feydit, one of the crew members of the Swiss Match Race Team, expressed his eagerness ahead of setting sail. "We are very happy to be here and very impassioned to start the first game of the event," Feydit told Shenzhen Daily. When asked about wind conditions, Feydit said they are adept at sailing even in minimal wind.
"We cannot control the wind condition. What we can do is just to focus on the job that we can do and take the best we can."
Established in 2000, WMRT promotes the sport of match racing globally and stands as the longest-running professional series in sailing. It has been recognized as a special event of World Sailing, the sport's governing body, since 2006.