Members of Dubai Offshore Sailing Club, guests, and EFG Sailing Arabia – The Tour teams welcomed a group of young children from Rashid Center for Disabled yesterday.
The youngsters, aged between 9 -13 years old and partially deaf, were able to meet all the sailing tea
ms and chat to Sidney Gavignet – one of France’s most respected and well-known offshore sailors, and winning skipper of Legs 1 and 3 of the Tour.
Gavignet talked about his sailing adventures and about the days when he first started sailing as a child, giving them the inspiration to perhaps take up the sport of sailing one day.
Following the interesting chat with Gavignet, the youngsters were taken down to the marina and given a tour of the highly-tuned racing yacht –EFG Bank (Monaco) – and were inspired by Mohammed Al Mujaini, one of the key crewmembers, while he explained the team roles of the crew on the boat while racing.
The youngsters left the marina full of enthusiasm and were able to bid the teams farewell as crews prepared for the relatively short 60nm Leg 4 sprint from Dubai to Abu Dhabi.