12 countries in fray for international regatta

CHENNAI, Oct 8 (UNI): The Tamil Nadu Sailing Association(TSA) will play host to the first India International Regatta here from November 1 to 8, with the objective of giving further fillip to the sport, which was already attracting youth in large numbers.

Announcing this at a press conference here, Commodore TNSA Ashok Thakkar said 40 sailors from 12 countries had confirmed their participaton in the competition, which was also to promote conservation and preservation of environment, as sailing was a clean sport using only wind and water, in addition to the boats.

"Some of our sailors have been going abroad to train and participate in competitions.

But now we will have international class sailors and coaches coming here", he said.

This would enable our sailors to learn from the best and emulate them, he added.

He stated that before the event, Indian sailors who will be vying for honours in this event will receive training from a coach from Singapore and another from Australia.

A number of corporates will be sponsoring the event with Volvo group in India being the principal sponsor.

Seventy nine Indian sailors have registered for participation so far, he informed.