Northern Ireland Sailing Team travel to Valencia for warm weather training camp

The Northern Ireland Sailing Team have returned from Valencia following a warm weather training camp between the 27^th of December to the 4^th of January.

A group of ILCA sailors including Daniel Palmer, Cormac Byrne, Autumn Halliday, Tom Coulter, Dan McGaughey and Bobby Driscoll, travelled to the Spanish city to take part in sessions with sailors from Wales, Scotland, Spain and The Irish Academy.

This is the second successive year Northern Irish sailors have taken part in this camp, and the climate in Valencia allows them to spend longer on the water, maximising improvements.

Sailors from the Northern Irish Sailing Team also had access to excellent gym facilities, allowing them to carry out strength and conditioning sessions when they came off the water.

Following the camp, RYA Northern Ireland Performance Manager Andrew Baker said: “In addition to the benefits the sailors gained from spending hours on the water, the sailors were responsible for their own time management and logistics. We would set times for launching at the club but no set bedtime or alarm clocks. Sailors would cook for themselves and the larger group. I feel this atmosphere gives the sailors a chance to learn at their own speed but encourages ownership and maturity too.

“For many sailors, training at their home club or region means they can find themselves within their comfort zone. They know who to watch for when it's light air or who can hike the hardest in breeze. Training with new people of a higher standard can make the sailor question things and push them outside their comfort zone.”

The camp came just one month from the Celtic Cup which will be hosted at Killyleagh Yacht Club on the 1^st and 2^nd of February.

This event will see Topper and ILCA sailors from Wales and Scotland travel to Northern Ireland to compete against members of the Northern Ireland Sailing Team. This will be an ideal opportunity for Northern Irish sailors to see where they stand against other sailors in the United Kingdom ahead of a busy summer of racing.