L’Escala is getting ready to hold the 2024 RS21 World Championship

12/September/2024
Category: Regattas

Club Nàutic L’Escala will host the 2024 World Championship of the RS21 monotype sailing class between the 21st and 28th of September. The presentation of the event, took place today Thursday 12th September at 11 a.m. in the Assembly Hall of L’Escala Town Hall and marks the start of the countdown for a competition that will place the Costa Brava on the international regatta calendar.

Around 50 boats and 200 sailors from 14 different countries will experience eight exciting days of competition and fun.

The President of the Club Narcís Carreras, the Sports Councillor of the Alt Empordà Regional Council Núria Escarpenter and the Mayor of L’Escala Josep Bofill attended the event.

Sustainable sailing boats

The sports director of the Club and of the regatta, Xavi López, gave details of the upcoming RS21 World Championship. The RS21 is a 6.67-metre keeled monotype sailboat that, in addition to the performance and fun, stands out for being sustainable. Its structure is made from bio-derived resins and recycled materials and is equipped with an electric motor for manoeuvring in confined spaces or without wind.

The RS21 sails with crews made up of four people, who on this occasion will represent the countries of Spain, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Ireland, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, the United States, Australia and the United Arab Emirates. In order to assist them, the organisers have planned to have a team of more than 40 people.

Eight competition days

The regatta will open its gates on the 21st and 22nd of September for training and measurements. I will have a village located in the Club’s headquarters square in and several moorings located nearby.

The opening ceremony will take place on the 23rd at 6 p.m. and will kick off four days of official competition during which three races will be held every day between 12 p.m. and 5 p.m. They will be followed by various social events designed for sailors to get together. On the 28th, the last day of competition, the prize-giving ceremony, which will take place at 6 p.m., will bring the RS21 2024 World Championship to a close.

Responsible event

The RS21 2024 World Championship is eligible for the platinum seal of Sailors for the Sea’s Clean Regattas programme, which has been endorsing the sustainability of events that take place on the water since 2006. In this sense, the Club has developed four lines of work to minimise the impact of the regatta on the surrounding natural environment. These are the correct management of waste, responsible water consumption, the prevention of toxins entering the sea and the organisation of a coastal clean-up.

In its social aspect, the regatta will be integrated into the Community Service Project of the IES El Pedró de l’Escala secondary school. Under this project, a group of students will participate as volunteers in the organisation of the regatta, which will allow them to extend their learning in the active exercise of citizenship, as well as to put their knowledge and skills at the service of the community.

The RS21 2024 World Championship will be organised by Club Nàutic L’Escala and the RS21 class with the support of the Catalan Sailing Federation and the Royal Spanish Sailing Federation.
The event has the institutional support of L’Escala Town Council, Girona Provincial Council, the Costa Brava Tourist Board and the General Secretariat of Sport of the Catalan Government. It also counts with the collaboration of Hyundai Fornells Motor, RS Sailing, Camping la Ballena Alegre, the Consejo Superior de Deportes, Ports de la Generalitat, Nautivela and RS Veleros.

The regatta will be financed by the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan financed by European Union funds – Next Generation EU, as part of the actions that form part of the collaboration agreement signed this summer between L’Escala Town Council and Club Nàutic l’Escala with the aim of promoting sustainable activities at sea, as well as non-motorised nautical events.