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ONLY Thailand's Keerati Bualong prevented Singapore's sailors from a clean sweep of the podium positions at the Sentosa National Byte & Optimist Championships yesterday. Last year's World Byte champion Bualong finished ahead of Singapore's Terence Choo and Herman Nurfendi in the Byte event. There was much at stake for the local Byte sailors as the regatta was the selection trial for the Byte CII World meet in August. Up to six sailors will earn a berth to the event in Britain. The Byte CII class is also being considered for the single-handed events at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games. Meanwhile, Rachel Lee lived up to her tag of Singapore's top Optimist sailor, clinching first place in the event. Compatriots Russell Kan and Luke Tan were second and third respectively. These championships served as the selection trials for the Asian Sailing Championships, 1st Asian Beach Games and 2008 Asean Optimist Championships. A selection panel will determine if the local top-placed finishers will represent the Republic in the various competitions. The five-day regatta attracted a record 434 sailors from 10 countries. Although it was the 10th edition of the championships, it was only the third time that overseas sailors were allowed to participate - a move which SingaporeSailing president Low Teo Ping feels has benefited local sailors. He said: 'I never thought the day would come when our national championships are like international events. 'We think that this is the way to go and it's a win-win situation for everyone.' While overseas sailors get to benchmark themselves against Singapore's best, local sailors are given exposure to an event of international standards. Low added: 'It allows our sailors, especially those who are not in the national squad, to sail with competitors from overseas. 'This will give them experience and allow them to prepare for bigger things to come.' |
