One year to go... 

Celebrate the build up to London 2012

Olympic spirit is in the air today (Wednesday 27 July) as we celebrate ‘one year to go’ until the official opening of the London 2012 Olympic Games.  

With the Games taking place in the UK, the profile of sport has never been so high and of course we have a special interest in sailing!  

The British Sailing Team are currently preparing for the Weymouth and Portland International Regatta (Test Event) which takes place 31 July to 13 August 2011.  

 This is the official test event for the Olympic sailing classes in Weymouth and Portland and is a full scale dress rehearsal with one boat per nation per class and another opportunity for 2012 hopefuls to fight it out on Olympic waters.  

Keep up to date with all the action, results and blogs from the Regatta on  http://www.rya.org.uk/supportcrew/Pages/default.aspx

Showing your support  

In the build up to the to the Games sailing clubs all over the country have been taking part in Sail for Gold activities and putting on events to embrace the Olympic spirit.  

On the weekend of 22-24 July, coinciding with the LOCOG Open Weekend, clubs held open days inviting the local community to visit their clubs and to have a go at sailing.  

One club who embraced this opportunity were Queen Mary Sailing Club in Middlesex who offered free 90 minute taster sessions throughout the weekend.  

“It was fantastic to invite the public to sail at our club and celebrate ‘a year to go’ to the Games” said Club Secretary Catherine Rawson  

“All the taster sessions were fully booked within three days and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves. We even had people signing up for further training courses”.  

Celia Edgington, Coordinator of the Sail for Gold initiative added: “We are delighted that clubs are using this opportunity to not only celebrate the countdown to the Games, but to encourage others to get out on the water and experience the sport.”  

 “We are hoping events like these will help to push sailing clubs into the heart of the community during the build up to Olympic and Paralympic Games”.  

The RYA Sail for Gold initiative aims to bring the excitement of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games to sailors across the nation.  

If you would like more information about the Sail for Gold programme or to sign up to become a Sail for Gold club visit www.rya.org.uk/sailforgold