Students from Hassan bin Thabitschool were the winners of the fourth annual Interschool Sailing Championship which turned Mussanah Sports City into a hive of activity and keen competitive team-spirit today as 120 young sailors representing 19 schools competed against their peers in a fun regatta.
The top three winning sailors Musab Al Saad, Mohammed Al Belushi and Azd Al Fazari were selected according to points from the final race while the winning three schools Hassan bin Thabit, Child Care Centre, and Al Khalil bin Ahmed Al Farahidi were selected based on the highest score of each of the five sailors in their team.
11 year old, Amna Abdullah, who represented the Child Care Center in Muscat, was the only young woman sailor competing this year. She received a special award for her outstanding performance and her contribution in helping her centre win the second place overall.
Themed under the banner “Your school is your pride” and sponsored by Renaissance Services, the championship provided young students enrolled in community programmes at Oman Sail’s three sailing schools at Marina BanderRowdha, Mussanah Sports City and the Wave, Muscat the chance to showcase what they had learnt during the year and build their competitive racing skills in sailing.
Light 2 – 4 knot winds inside the Mussanah Marina provided perfect gentle weather conditions for the novice sailors aged between 8 and 16 taking part in the race.
The prize-giving was held under the patronage of HE. Saud bin Salim Al-Balushi Undersecretary for Planning and Development of Human Resources, Ministry of Education. His Excellency was joined by His Excellency Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Farsi, Wali of Musannah, Stephen Thomas's CEO Renaissance Services, parents and teachers.
Stephen Thomas, CEO of Renaissance Services congratulated Oman Sail for the tremendous things it has achieved in just five years. “We really appreciate what Oman Sail is doing. It is important to support young children, both boys and girls. The future of the country depends on the young people, on the youth and this is why we love supporting this event.
“Some children will gain in interest in sailing and come back and achieve even greater things in sailing. Importantly they are learning a skill set that they can carry with them through life. We are pleased to be able to contribute and support them in this,” said Thomas.
“This event is one of the most important events we do. The youth are the future of the country and they are our future sailors,” added David Graham, CEO of Oman Sail.
"This is a solid investment in the future and it’s absolutely critical to the success of Oman Sail. To see this event grow in the way it has its really encouraging for the sport of sailing, for the sport in general and for the country”
Rashid Al Kindi, Chairman of Oman Sailing Association commented:
“At the recent 2013 Laser World Championships at this same world class venue here in Mussanah Sports City we welcomed world champions and the best sailors from every continent. Today we are proud to see our own future champions sail and compete for glory,”
He added that the support and presence from officials of the Ministry of Education, local government, schools, parents and teachers meant a great deal to the youngsters competing in the school regatta.
Top Sailors:
1st: Mussab Al Sad
2nd: Mohammed Al Belushi
3rd: Azd Al Fazari
Winning Schools:
1st: Hassan bin Thabit (Team members: Abdulmajeed Al Hasani – Bashar Al Harthi – Hussain Al Mansoori – Ali Al Hassani – Luai Al Qassimi)
2nd: Child Care Centre (Team members: Mohsin Abdullah – Adnan Abdulrahman – Mutasim Abdullah – Fahad Abdul Wahab – Amna Abdullah)
3rd: Al Khaleel bin Ahmed Al Faraheedi: (Team members: Omar Al Qartoobi – Musab Al Suraihi – Malik Al Qartoobi – Abdullah Al Suraihi – Mutasim Al Farsi).
