400 sailors ready

Weymouth gears up for 2006 9er Championships, set to follow the Youth World Championship

The Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy's month of major events is set to continue with the 2012 Olympic sailing venue hosting the Group 4 Securicor 9er Championships 2006 from 22-29 July.

Following straight on from the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship (12-21 July), the Group 4 Securicor 9er Championships combines the 29er World Championships and the 49er European Championships, which together will feature some 200 boats and 400 sailors from 25 countries racing in Weymouth Bay and Portland Harbour.

Weymouth locals and newly crowned World Champions Chris Draper and Simon Hiscocks will headline in the 95-boat 49er Europeans fleet, where they will be gunning for their third consecutive European title. The world number one ranked Skandia Team GBR sailors are in good form having claimed the world title for the second time in Aix-les-Bains, France, last month, but will face competition from some tough rivals if they're to keep a hold on their European title.

Team mates Stevie Morrison and Ben Rhodes will also be hungry for another podium finish following their bronze from the Worlds, while Italy's world number two ranked pairing of Pietro and Gianfranco Sibello are definitely ones to watch. With the exception of the 49er Worlds where they finished 16th, the Italian brothers have medalled at each of the six major regattas they've competed in this year, with a gold from their most recent efforts at Kiel Week last month.

Spanish Olympic champions Iker Martinez and Xavier Fernandez are also a potent threat, with two golds in the Olympic skiff class at the French Olympic Sailing Week at Hyeres in April, and at the ISAF World Sailing Games at Lake Neusiedl, Austria, in May.

The 29ers recently concluded their European Championships in Alicante, Spain, with the British dominating the youth high performance class. The European gold medallists from Wales, Huw Humpreys and Max Todd, will be on good form heading into the 29er Worlds on home waters, while European silver medallists and current British Youth Champions Dylan Fletcher and Rob Partridge will also be eager to impress.

Finnish sailor Silja Lethenin will be both a contender for the overall and the girls' prize, while Pepi Bettini from Argentina has been in the top three at the last three World Championships. The Danish and American sailors are also expected to put up a strong fight.

"We're delighted with the strength of entry at these Championships, which, in terms of competitor numbers, will be the biggest sailing event staged to date at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy," said Rosie Julian, Event Director.

The Group 4 Securicor 9er Championships is run in association with the RYA, the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy and the 29er and 49er Class Associations, and is supported by UK Sport's World Class Events Programme.

Racing runs from Monday 24 July through to Saturday 29 July.