Young sailors from all across the Caribbean came together over the weekend for a special sailing race – the 19th Annual St. Maarten Optimist Championship – and enjoyed days of competition, community and fun! Event organiser Dolein van de Loo proudly shared with The KIDS Herald that 44 sailors joined in from across the region, which is more than previous years. Next year, the event is expected to be even bigger and better, with the Championship’s 20th edition!
The event took place Thursday through Sunday, and young sailors from Sint Maarten and Saint Martin were joined by their peers who came in from Antigua, the British Virgin Islands (BVI), Curaçao, Guadeloupe, St. Barths, and St. Kitts and Nevis – teams representing a total of eight countries! The race was hosted by Sint Maarten Yacht Club and organised together with the Sint Maarten Sailing Federation SIMSAF. For the second year in a row, it was kindly sponsored by the company Budget Marine.
There were a few nice changes for the young sailors this year, including an extra day of action and the addition of a Green Fleet.
Normally, the race would take place on Saturday and Sunday, but this year it started on the Friday, and a practice-race was also held on Thursday afternoon before the official welcome ceremony.
As for the Green Fleet, it was specially designed for newcomers, offering a simpler course with easier rules and a shorter time on the water. That way, newcomers could compete in a big race, without too much extra pressure. There were two other fleets – the Optimist and the Benjamin fleet – which sailed the same course. The Benjamin fleet hosted younger sailors, giving them their own ranking and chance to shine. All in all, the sailors ranged in age from seven to 15.
A professional Race Officer, Mr. Mathieu Maudet, also came all the way from France to oversee the event. With many contestants being French-speaking, it was also helpful that Mr. Maudet could work in both French and English.
Besides the racing, the welcome ceremony and the kick-off to every sailing day was a spectacle to behold, from the dock of the Sint Maarten Yacht Club Bar and Restaurant. During the welcome ceremony, teams passed through the bridge during the 5:00pm bridge opening, flaunting their country flags and introducing themselves to the audience. At the start of every racing day, all the teams sailed past the bridge together during a special bridge opening, an exciting scene for the onlookers.
Next year’s event, the 20th edition, is already something that participants, supporters and organisers are looking forward to! It will take place on November 27-30, 2025.
And the winners are:
Optimist Fleet Award:
1. Thomas Magras (St. Barth)
2. Nathan Sheppard (Sint Maarten)
3. Tao Carmona Bouvrais (St Barth)
Benjamin Fleet Award:
1. Stanley Haes (St. Barth)
2. Oskar Jarrett Versteegden (Sint Maarten)
3. Leo Favreau (St. Barth)
Green Fleet Award:
1. Ethan Blanchet (St. Barth)
2. Axel vanden Eynde (Sint Maarten)
3. Saul Claus Laroche (Saint Martin)
Sportsmanship Award:
Axel vanden Eynde, for stopping in the middle of the race to bail water out of the boat of his teammate.
Newcomer Award:
Saul Claus Laroche (Saint Martin)
National Dinghy Champion:
Nathan Sheppard (Sint Maarten)
This could only be won by someone from a Sint Maarten team in the Optimist Fleet. Nathan had the highest position.
