| UK. HRH Princess Royal accepts limited edition print of Gipsy Moth, Lively Lady & Suhaili |
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; "Princess Anne arriving at London Boat Show")
| Wednesday, 11 January 2006 | |
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Anna Symcox: Today, Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal was presented with the first copy of a limited edition print by leading marine water-colourist Colin Baxter. The print is of the three round the world yachts, Gipsy Moth IV, Lively Lady and Suhaili when they sailed together for the first time ever as part of a race organised by the United Kingdom Sailing Academy (UKSA) in August 2005. A limited number of the prints have been released for sale with the aim of raising over Ł40,000 to be shared between three cancer charities nominated by the UK Sailing Academy and Yachting Monthly, Alan Priddy and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston. The UKSA and Yachting Monthly have chosen The Ellen MacArthur Trust to receive some of the money raised from the sale of the prints due to their close links with the Academy and the Gipsy Moth IV Project. Her Royal Highness is Patron of the UKSA and has been very supportive of the Gipsy Moth IV Project since it began in September 2004. The Princess Royal has attended several events including Gipsy Moth IV’s re-commissioning at the Festival of the Sea in Portsmouth and her re-dedication in Greenwich and is hoping to meet the yacht when it arrives in Sydney in July 2006. The idea to race the three yachts came from Sir Robin Knox Johnston, who sailed 32ft Suhaili single handed non-stop around the world in 1969, just a few years after Sir Francis Chichester and Sir Alec Rose’s circumnavigations. On Tuesday 17th August 2005, the three yachts gathered at the UK Sailing Academy for a race briefing held by Simon Davies, Director of Coaching at the Academy who took the three teams through the courses and explained the handicap system that was put in place to compensate for the yacht’s differing sizes. Despite the very light winds, two races took place in the Solent under glorious sunshine with many spectator boats in attendance. Although Gipsy Moth IV took line honours on both races, the handicap system in place revealed Lively Lady to be the true winner. A prize giving ceremony took place at the UKSA where Alan Priddy accepted the prize of Plymouth Gin and as per his gentlemanly agreement with Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, shared it with Suhaili’s crew! David Green, Gipsy Moth IV Global Project Manager said, “It was a magical day to have the three grand ladies of the sea sailing together for the first time, it was a little disappointing not to win on corrected time however the painting by Colin Baxter captivates the excitement of the day and is a lovely memento of the occasion. We are delighted that our Patron The Princes Royal has seen fit to accept this gift, as she has been such a great supporter of all things maritime and the Gipsy Moth IV project in particular” The race was such a success that plans are in place for another race when Gipsy Moth IV and Lively Lady have completed their second global circumnavigations. |
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| Last Updated ( Wednesday, 11 January 2006 ) |
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