Napier to host Optimist World Champs

Napier will host the 2011 Optimist World Championships following a successful bid by the New Zealand International Optimist Dinghy Association (NZIODA) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The NZIODA has secured the right to host the event which will be the first time ever the world’s biggest junior regatta has been staged in Oceania. The decision was made by a vote at the class Annual General Meeting just held in Brazil at the conclusion of the 2009 Optimist World Champs.

45 countries voted at the meeting, and New Zealand came out ahead of Peru to host the worlds. The team in Rio are thrilled at the result, which has involved lobbying of the many country representatives.

The regatta typically attracts around 250 young sailors from around the globe with as many as 50 nations represented.

New Zealand’s first and only Optimist World Champion was Chris Steele who won the title in 2007.

Click here for the NZIODA website.