Hong Kong, 6 March 2023: The Boase Cohen & Collins Inter-School Sailing Festival returned in style at the weekend with 150 teenagers enjoying two days of intense match racing amid glorious weather.
Some 20 teams from 15 schools took part in the regatta, organised by the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club at its Middle Island facility. It marked the event’s first staging since 2019 following several pandemic-enforced postponements.
“Our congratulations go to all the teams who put in months of training and raced with tremendous spirit. As well, we would like to thank the Yacht Club’s staff and the large number of volunteers who helped make the event such a success,” says BC&C Senior Partner Colin Cohen, who presented the trophies and medals together with Rear Commodore Mark Parker.
“We have been title sponsor since 2016 and it was wonderful to see the regatta make such a triumphant return. As a firm, we have a proud record of supporting youthful endeavor, in the legal profession and beyond, and the Inter-School Sailing Festival is an integral part of this commitment.
This year’s event was notable for featuring, for the first time, two schools from Mainland China and both achieved excellent results. Vanke Meisha Academy finished fourth in Division A, which was won by ISF Academy, while Meisha Bilingual School came third in Division B, won by the Hong Kong Schools Sailing Association. In addition to their trophies and medals, the winning teams in each division received a HK$10,000 scholarship to continue their sail training programmes.
BC&C hosted more than 50 guests to a Sunday afternoon buffet in the clubhouse and they were given a quick lesson in short-course sailing by Jamie Boag, formerly Team Director of 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race winners Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, who dropped by to explain what was happening out on the water.
RESULTS
Division A – Feva: 1-ISF Academy, 2-German Swiss International School Team One, 3-Hong Kong Academy, 4-Vanke Meisha Academy.
Division B – Pico/Fusion: 1-Hong Kong Schools Sailing Association, 2-Canadian International School of Hong Kong, 3-Meisha Bilingual School, 4-Chinese International School Team Two.