Italy wins Mini Jis racing in le Havre

Allied Clubs of the Yacht Club de France test their mettle

This weekend in Le Havre saw an international gathering of the Allied Clubs of the Yacht Club de France, organised by the Société des Régates du Havre (SRH) yacht club (international because the Allied Club include several overseas affiliates).

Seven Clubs were represented by 14 competitors, from Trieste and Sardinia in Italy and from Marseilles, Angers, the Paris region and Le Havre in France.

Saturday, and a small breeze allowed the representatives from the Italian, Marseille and Parisian clubs to show their prowess at the helm of their MiniJi yachts. On Saturday evening a multilingual dinner was the opportunity to confirm that all Sardinians don't only dine on olive oil and that sailing is a sport where the warmth of the events and the festive times together offset the sporting passion and the desire to win, that reign out on the water and around the buoys.

Sunday and it was under a stiff breeze, that the helmsmen fronted up to each other in a series of wonderful races, where tacking skills, precision sail adjustment and tactics were decisive in winning the day.

The Italians of the Yacht Club di Porto-Rotondo, (Sardinia), inspired perhaps by the presence of their Commodore Giovanni Battista Borea d’ Olmo, the Yacht Club de France and the Société Nautique de Marseille, took the first three places on the podium, with the SRH, courteously letting the guests win with a fourth place.

At the prize giving ceremony which followed, Anne de Bagneaux-Savatier, SRH Commodore commented on the success of the event and commended the pleasures of cross-border events such as this one, between competitors sharing the same values, round the wonderful sport that is the sailing.

Final Results

1- Yacht Club di Porto Rotondo (Sardinia-Italy)
2 - Yacht Club de France (Paris-France)
3 - Société Nautique de Marseille (Marseille-France),
4 - Société des Régates du Havre (Le Havre-France),
5 -Yacht Club d’Ariaco (Trieste-Italy),
6 - Cercle de la Voile (Angers-France),
7 -Yacht Club de l’Ile de France (Les Mureaux -France).