Issue date
A new Class Association has been formed in New Zealand to support the Olympic multihull catamaran – the Nacra 17.
The Nacra 17 multihull yacht has been introduced to the Olympic Games as a mixed gender (one female and one male crew) event and will be contested for the first time in Rio 2016.
Their intention as a Class is for the New Zealanders to have the opportunity to compete with distinction internationally and at the Olympic Games and we also aim to build the Class locally so there is a domestic fleet allowing all sailors to have the chance to participate and race.
There are currently three kiwi crews in Europe who have already purchased boats and to further build the fleet the Class Association intends to purchase another three Nacra 17 Class boats to have here in New Zealand.
The first ever 2013 Nacra 17 World Championships are to be held in Holland at the end of July and the Class Association hopes to have four crews competing at this event. They will travel to Holland with a manager and coach. This is an exciting time for catamaran sailing and offers a great opportunity for New Zealand.
The Worlds team includes
Gemma Jones & Jason Saunders
Tomer Simhony & Nicole van der Velden
Vicky Francis & Gareth Moore
Briar Dye-Hutchison & James Sandal
Coach : Anton Paz (Spain)
The current crop of sailors that have chosen to campaign the Nacra 17 for the Olympics have all come through the Optimist, Youth and Olympic Classes and have a wealth of international experience and results.
2012 Olympian in the Men’s 470 class Jason Saunders has paired with Gemma Jones to campaign in the mixed multihull. The pair have sailed three major internationals already including ISAF Sailing World Cup Regattas in Palma, Spain and Hyeres, France, as well as the opening EUROSAF Regatta in Lake Garda in early May where they placed 4th.
Gemma and Jason as well as Nicole and Tomer are also doing Keil Week in June before World Champs in July.
If you want to get in touch with the NZ Nacra 17 Class Association see their directory page here.
Image: Gemma Jones and Jason Saunders competing at Garda Trentino Olympic Week
Image: Gemma Jones and Jason Saunders competing at Garda Trentino Olympic Week
