· The Royal Spanish Sailing Federation chose this year the Monte Real Club de Yates to organize the national event of these 8-meter monotypes
· 38 of the best crews in the country will compete in this competition of 9 tests in the waters of the Rías Baixas from this Friday to Sunday
· Galicia, Cantabria and the Basque Country are the communities that aspire to the title with the largest number of sailboats in this event sponsored by Gestilar
The fishing village of Baiona hosts, from this Friday to Sunday , the J80 Spanish Championship, an event that will measure the best crews of these 8-meter monotypes in the Rías Baixas. The Royal Spanish Sailing Federation delegated the organization of the event to the Monte Real Yacht Club and the club from Baiona, sponsored by Gestilar, will be in charge of putting the 9 races into contention which, if the wind allows it, will include the competition.
After a skippers meeting convened for twelve noon on Friday, in which the rules will be recalled and the guidelines for the different regattas will be given, the fleet will compete in the first rounds starting at two in the afternoon. The 38 participating boats will compete as a fleet and in real time . They must complete a course of the windward leeward type between buoys. It will be a double loop layout, with two upwind and two stern, which will be placed at the exit of the Bay of Baiona.
Although the J80 competitions organized by Monte Real are usually held inside the bay of Baiona, in a very specific area, the club decided on this occasion to move the regatta course a little further outside, to the place where in 2023 the World Class will be played. This will make it easier for the fleet, especially those that arrive from other communities and have fewer options to sail in Galicia, to get used to Galician waters and thus prepare for the World Cup.
Behind the Galician fleet, which covers more than half of the inscriptions (24), with a great weight of ships from Monte Real (17); the communities with the highest number of applicants for the title are Cantabria (7) and the Basque Country (4), with the presence, albeit a minority, of teams from other regions such as Valencia.
Among the participants, some of the big names in sailing in Spain, like the former J80 world champion, Ignacio Camino, aboard the Cantabrian Solintal; Spanish runner-up José Azqueta leading the biobizz (RCM of Abra RSC); or the recent Copa del Rey champion at the helm of the Teatro Soho Caixabank, Dany Cuevas, with the kuko.
Also entering the fray will be Peru Múgica’s Etnia Barcelona or Jaime Piris’s Avator Mercury , among others; all-female crews such as the Decoexa , led by Olatz Muñoz (RCN San Sebastián) and mixed such as the Dorsia Covirán of Nuria Sánchez (Marina Burriananova).
among the locals, the names that sound the most for their good results in the J80 leagues held in Baiona are the Okofen by Javier de la Gandara; Juan Carlos Ameneiro’s Rampage, which will carry Spanish class champion Javier Aguado on board; or the Cleansiling of Chisco Catalán, in which Willy Alonso will also sail. Alberto Moro and Malalo Bermúdez’s Solventis Ribadeo are also expected to put up quite a fight on the water; the Cansino by Nano Yáñez and the Spaco by Santiago Estévez.
In the three days of competition (Friday from two in the afternoon, and Saturday and Sunday from twelve noon), the regatta committee hopes to be able to start the nine tests that are on the program, being mandatory that only two be held to give for valid the championship, and giving the crews the possibility of discarding their worst result in the classification from the fifth round.
Three categories will compete: the absolute, the mixed (in which at least 40 per cent of the crew must be of different gender) and the juvenile (in which none of the crew may have been born after 1998); and the awards ceremony for the winners will be held on Sunday at five in the afternoon in the gardens of the Monte Real Club de Yates.
Officially presented this Thursday in Baiona, the Spanish J80 Championship arrives in Galicia in 2022 after having been held in 2021 in Andalusia by the Real Club Náutico de la Línea de la Concepción. The victory then went to the Princesa Yaiza of five-time world champion Rayco Tabares, with world champion Pablo Santurde finishing second on board the M&G Tressis and Per Román’s GP Bullhound closing the podium.
“The J80s have been, for a long time, -said the president of Monte Real, José Luis Álvarez, at the presentation of the event- a very powerful fleet in Spain. They have been proving it for years, with the increase in units and competitions, and also with the achievement of international titles. Some of the best sailors in the class are Spanish and this club is proud to have supported them for ten years”.
The MRCYB brought the first J80s to Baiona in 2012. It facilitated the purchase of boats and moorings, created specific competitions for them and included them in its most important trophies. In 2018 he was chosen to organize the Spanish Championship, an event with which he repeats this year; and in 2023 it will host the World Cup. “ It is our objective to continue writing the history of the J80 in Spain, and that is where we are” , concluded the president of the Baionese club.
The J80 Spanish Championship is organized by the Monte Real Club de Yates with the sponsorship of Gestilar and Homes by Gestilar and the collaboration of the Royal Spanish Sailing Federation and the Royal Galician Sailing Federation. It also has the support of the Xunta de Galicia, the Pontevedra Provincial Council and the Pontevedra City Council; and from brands and companies such as Volvo Autesa, Martin Miller’s Gin or Terras Gauda, among others.
OFFICIAL PRESENTATION DECLARATIONS
Monte Real Yacht Club September 15, 2022
“The J80 have been, for a long time, a very powerful fleet in Spain. They have been proving it for years, with the increase in units and competitions, and also with the achievement of international titles. Some of the best sailors in the class are Spanish and this club is proud to have supported them for ten years. It is our goal to continue writing the history of the J80 in Spain, and that is where we are”
José Luis Álvarez, president of the Monte Real Yacht Club
“For Gestilar, supporting this Spanish J80 Championship is very important because Galicia is much more than a place to develop our activity. It is a place to which we have a very special affection, and in my case also personal, for which we bet in a very clear way and where we have put part of the best that we have as a company with many important projects underway”
Javier García-Valcárcel, president of Gestilar, sponsor of the event
“For us it is an honor to be here presenting this event that, moreover, is the prelude to a World Cup in 2023, which will place Baiona on the international map. I think that all of us men and women from Baiona boast about Monte Real because without it, Baiona would not be the same. From the council we welcome all the crews and athletes, and we hope they enjoy Baiona these days”
Carlos Gómez, Mayor of Bayonne
“This has been a spectacular regatta season at Monte Real. There is no doubt that this club has the J80 fleet in its DNA, and this year we are going to repeat the success of the 2018 championship. Let’s hope, with the permission of all the crews, that it will also be a local victory. I wish all the participants the best of luck and that they enjoy our community in such an important year for El Camino de Santiago and el Xacobeo”
Marta Fernández-Tapias, territorial delegate of the Xunta de Galicia in Vigo
“I have to congratulate Monte Real for all their work to carry out this type of competitions that put Galicia in the national spotlight, because they entail a lot of effort and tenacity, and that is something that forms part of the essence of this club. I think this is a very important event, since it is the prelude to the World Cup that we will have in Baiona next year. It is key that we continue betting on sport and that we do so with relevant events, which consolidate us as a sports benchmark and attract people to Galicia and Baiona”
Gorka Gómez, sports deputy of the Pontevedra Provincial Council
“During these days, 38 boats will compete in real time in our fabulous estuary. 24 of them are from Galicia and 17 from Monte Real, and there is a large presence of boats from Cantabria and the Basque Country, as well as crews from other communities. Our wish as a club is that this championship will serve as training for next year’s World Cup, from which we are sure a Spanish winner will emerge. That is why we have chosen almost the same dates and the same regatta field, in the Cíes area, to serve as contact and preparation for the World Cup event”
Ignacio Sánchez Otaegui, Commodore of the Monte Real Yacht Club
J80 SPANISH CHAMPIONSHIP GESTILAR TROPHY
Monte Real Yacht Club Baiona, 15 – 18 September 2022
THURSDAY 15 10:00 – 19:00 Registration and control of equipment
FRIDAY 16 12:00 Skippers meeting 14:00 Start of tests
SATURDAY 17 · 12:00 Start of tests
SUNDAY 18 12:00 Start of tests 17:00 Awards ceremony
