Dubai: Morning shows the day, but it didn't when the Standard Chartered Challenge Cup took to the waters at the Dubai Offshore Sailing Club (DOSC) on Saturday. There was hardly any wind in the sails when the competition tried to unfurl itself after a 27-year hiatus. Things, however, changed dramatically by afternoon as hosts DOSC rekindled their historic rivalry with Abu Dhabi Sailing Club (ADSC) on the blue waters of the Arabian Sea.
Going back a long way
While the event itself may not quite have the same history as an Oxford v Cambridge boat race, it nevertheless goes back a long way. First held in 1973, two years after the UAE was founded, the inter-club competition was held twice a year until 1984 with the last one being won by the ADSC.
This year, the first leg at ADSC in May was won by DOSC, who hosted the just-concluded second leg. Sailors competed for the entire day in a bid to win the Challenge Cup, and the event drew a large crowd of sailing enthusiasts who enjoyed the intense competition in 38 races. For the record, DOSC emerged victorious in 35 races.
One of the outstanding performers on the day was Sami Al Kooheji of DOSC on his individual laser. The Bahraini has been part of his country's national side for a decade and told XPRESS: "It's a great competition that has been revived. I am the only Arab guy in the DOSC team and we have a great team of sailors. I have sailed before but the concept of team sailing is completely different to what I have done before."
Like most of his team-mates, 60-year-old Kevin Renshaw of ADSC was on choppy waters in a Laser Vago. But his enthusiasm was unrivalled. "I live in Abu Dhabi and have sailed in many parts of the world like back home in the UK, Australia and Hong Kong. This is a fun event with a competitive edge. I am sure an event like this is held in other parts of the world but it is the only team sailing competition that I know of," he said.
There were some great performances from young sailors like Harry Bone-Knell with Oscar Lindley-Smith in a Laser Vago, both 12-year-olds. Fourteen-year-old Rupert Jagtiani was also a standout performer in a Laser Standard boat.
Jonathan Morris, CEO of Standard Chartered UAE, the sponsors of the race, said: "Sailing has always been part of the way of life here and we are pleased to relive the excitement and fun of this contest, which is almost as old as the UAE itself. We would like to congratulate all the participants from Dubai Offshore Sailing Club and Abu Dhabi Sailing Club."
Rulebook
The Standard Chartered Challenge Cup 2011 is a team racing event where winning is based on a points system. The points are related to where the sailors finish in the field and those with the lowest points win.
Competition was held in three classes:
- Laser Bahia (two per boat)
- Laser Vago (two per boat)
- Laser Standards (one per boat)
