NEWS
Bahamas Sailing Association hosts Deltec Youth Regatta 2024
Joshua Weech - winner of the ILCA 6 (Laser Radial)
29 January 2024: Over 30 junior sailors (ranging in age from 8 to 19 years) took to the water this weekend, as The Bahamas Sailing Association (BSA) hosted its first youth regatta of 2024. The event was hosted by the Nassau Yacht Club and sponsored by Deltec Bank and Trust.
Competitors in five dinghy fleets, consisting of Optimist (Beginner and Championship fleets), Sunfish and ILCA 4 (Laser 4.7) and ILCA 6 (Laser Radial) took to the water in Montagu Bay in near ideal conditions of 12-14 knots. Competition was fierce with 2 of the fleets ending in series ties for first place after 7 races were completed.
Junior sailors competing at the Deltec Youth Regatta in ILCA 4 (Laser 4.7) and ILCA 6 (Laser Radial)
Lori Lowe, President of the BSA noted ‘Ultimately our goal is to encourage anyone to come out and learn to sail and enjoy the beautiful waters of The Bahamas and all the benefits sailing brings to young people. We are extremely grateful to Deltec Bank and Trust for providing the funding for the event and we are encouraged to see participation by both boys and girls and from beginner level to our more advanced sailors who regularly compete internationally”.
Donnie Martinborough recognized with Lifetime Achievement Award by the Sunfish World Council at 2023 Sunfish World Championships
19 December 2023: “The Lifetime Achievement Award was for all my accomplishments in the Sunfish Class, which came as a huge surprise and was very humbling. This is an award voted on and presented by the Sunfish World Council mainly for my success in winning three world championships. Being the first Bahamian to achieve such an honour is truly exciting,” Martinborough said.
Source: The Tribune - click to read more
Lori Lowe wins 2023 Bahamas Sunfish Nationals - first female to win the title
27 November 2023: The 2023 Bahamas Sunfish Open Nationals took place on 25 & 26 November, hosted by the Nassau Yacht Club. The event was open to all ages and competitors ranged in age from 12 years to over 70 years old. Ultimately it was master sailor Lori Lowe who claimed the title, the first female national champion since its inception in 1995.
Conditions were near perfect on Saturday (25th November), with winds of 12-14 knots and after 3 races were completed, Ms Lowe and ultimate runner-up, junior Joss Knowles of Exuma Sailing Club (and third place winner at the Bahamas Sunfish Junior Nationals held earlier in November), were tied in first place. On Sunday, the winds dropped and in an every race counts event Ms Lowe secured two second-place finishes to win the title, beating Joss by just one point. Third place was taken by former 5.5 meter Class world champion Gavin Mckinney.
Lori Lowe - 2023 Bahamas Sunfish National Champion (photo credit: Robert Dunkley)
Craig Ferguson II retains the title of Bahamas Junior Sunfish National Champion
13 November 2023: The 2023 Bahamas Junior Sunfish Nationals took place this past weekend (11 & 12 November, 2023) in beautiful Elizabeth Harbour in George Town, Great Exuma. The Exuma Sailing Club hosted the event for the first time and welcomed ten junior sailors from the Bahamas National Sailing School (BNSS) from Nassau, and 14 local sailors from Exuma.
The weather conditions provided some big challenges for the smaller, younger, and newer sailors to overcome with winds up over 20 knots for most of the races. However, the seasoned veteran junior sailors from Nassau embraced the chance to test their skills in the typical conditions for November in Exuma: big winds and tight chop straight from the eastern end of Elizabeth Harbour.
Source: Exuma Sailing Club - read more
Craig Ferguson II - Bahamas Junior Sunfish Champion 2023
Sailor Craig Ferguson II wins Junior High School Male Student of the Year at National Sports Awards
06 November 2023: The National Sports Awards Ceremony was held under a tent on the lawn of the Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium on Saturday, and scores of athletes were recognized for their hard work and results for the 2023 season.
Source: The Nassau Guardian - read more
Bahamian sailor Joshua Higgins to compete at 2023 Pan American Games
18 September 2023: The Bahamas Sailing Association (BSA) is pleased to announce that as a result of his 11th place finish in the Central America and Caribbean (CAC) Games, together with an extended qualification process 20-year old Joshua Higgins has qualified The Bahamas in the ILCA 7 Class for the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile. The sailing events at the 2023 Pan Am Games are scheduled to take place from 28 October to 05 November 2023 and this is the first time The Bahamas has qualified for the Pan Am Games in any Sailing Class since 2007.
Joshua Higgins in a ILCA 7
Patrick Tomlinson wins Fidelity Bahamas Optimist Championship 2023
02 October, 2023 - Patrick Tomlinson, 13, of Nassau, Bahamas wins the Fidelity Bahamas Optimist National Open Championship and takes the title of National Optimist Champion for the second consecutive year. Tomlinson, who sails with Lyford Cay Sailing, took an early lead in the racing Saturday with two firsts, and a fifth place in the first three races. He was the top Bahamian sailor as well as the overall winner of the championship, beating 53 sailors in the championship fleet - including sailors from the USA and Puerto Rico and several Family Islands.
Paul de Souza - Bahamas ILCA National Champion 2023
Paul de Souza wins Bahamas ILCA National Championship 2023
11 September 2023 - Montagu Bay was the venue for the 2023 Bahamas ILCA (Laser) National Championships on 9th and 10th September as 21 competitors fought to win the title of 2023 National Champion. After six races over two days, featuring a combined fleet of ILCA 7 (a single-handed dinghy sailed by men at the Olympic Games) and ILCA 6 (sailed by men, women and youth at major international regattas and by women at the Olympic Games), Paul de Souza won 5 of 6 races, thereby winning the Championship with a total of 5 points.
Paul de Souza (Head Coach, Bahamas Nassau Sailing School) was closely followed by Bryan Paine (Sailing Instructor, Lyford Cay Sailing) who finished in 2nd place (with total of 9 points) and Gavin McKinney (former World Champion in the 5.5 metre class) who finished 3rd overall (with a total of 20 points). Top female and top Junior sailor was Ellianne Higgs in 5th place overall (with a total of 24 points).