Qualifiers continue

Next round of the RYA National Match Racing Series to take place in Plymouth

Some of the south west’s keenest match racers will have the unique opportunity to pit their wits against a host of 2012 hopefuls when the RYA National Match Racing Series Qualifier Three takes place in Plymouth this weekend (18-19 July).

Following a link-up between the RYA and the Port of Plymouth Sailing Association (PPSA), the RYA National Match Racing Series has moved to Devon for a one-off event to offer sailors who live further afield the chance to qualify for the three-day Series Grand Final, which takes place at Queen Mary Sailing Club, Middlesex in October.

But there is an added incentive for some of the competing crews as five of the 10 participating teams in Plymouth are part of the RYA’s Women’s Olympic Classes Match Racing Academy undertaking development and training in their bid to win selection to represent Britain in the new Women’s Match Racing class at London 2012.

Among those set to compete at Mayflower Marina is reigning Women’s European champion skipper Lucy Macgregor, who with crew Annie Lush and Ally Martin, took gold at the Delta Lloyd Regatta – part of the ISAF Sailing World Cup Series – in May and will represent Skandia Team GBR at the Women’s Match Racing World Championships in Sweden at the end of this month.

This weekend’s event will be raced in the RYA’s fleet of J80s, which are on loan to PPSA for almost a month encompassing no fewer than six training and racing events that will be staged from Mayflower Marina.

Starting from last Saturday (11 July) until Thursday 30 July, the events include not only qualifier three of the RYA National Match Racing Series but also a one-off PPSA / RYA Match Racing event during the Port of Plymouth Regatta Week.

With most of the RYA’s match racing activity in recent years centred round the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA) and Queen Mary SC in Surrey, this move to the South West will be used in part to assess the feasibility of staging similar regional match racing events around the UK in the future.

In total seven qualifying rounds, including the RYA Youth, RYA Women’s and BUSA Match Racing Championship events, will be contested between April and September before the top British crews from each qualifying event are invited to do battle for the 2009 RYA National Match Racing Championship title at the Grand Final on 9 – 11 October.