| Spain. Hobie Tiger & Dragoon Worlds: 57 pre-entries include ISAF award winners Echavarri & Paz |
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| Friday, 21 July 2006 | |
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Diana Bogaards: The organisation of the fifth Hobie Tiger and second Hobie Dragoon Worlds 2006 received 57 pre-entries, among which the complete Nissan Pro Team Echavarri/Paz, Bundock/Ashny and Mourniac/Citeau. The competitive teams represent Australia, America, European and African countries. The races off the coast of Cangas (ESP) will start on Monday July 24th and last until Friday July 28th. Current European and World Champion Tornado and number one on the world ranking list, Fernando Echavarri and Antón Paz from Spain, will line up for their first Hobie Tiger Worlds. Last year, they received the ‘ISAF Sailor of the Year’ Award. Former World Champion Tornado and F18 Darren Bundock and A-cat Champion Glenn Ashby from Australia count as favourite for the title. Many sailors that have shown their talents before in the Hobie 16 will compete in the Hobie Tiger as well, such as Cedric Bader and Yann Montoya from France, who won the last Hobie 16 World Youth title. Also Blaine Dodds from South-Africa, World Champion Hobie 16 in 1998, has registered. There is one ladies' team: Frederique Pfeiffer and Francoise Dettling from France. During the five days, a maximum of twenty races are scheduled. If the weather allows it, the Hobie Tigers will sail a long distance race. Dragoon Plan This year's Hobie Dragoon Worlds is the second ever. The organisation provided all boats, in cooperation with Hobie Cat Europe. This means all competitors have identical cats. They are only allowed to add tell tails, wind indicators, a compass and a class legal tiller extension. Teams aged eleven to sixteen, can participate in the Dragoon Plan. In the week preceding the racing, they are trained by international trainers. With ten or more youth entries, the Hobie Dragoon Junior Champion title will be awarded. Older teams, parents competing with their children for example, participate in the open class competition with the Dragoon World Champion 2006 as highest goal. Thirty-one Dragoons, mainly from Spain, have registered for the championships. Cangas The event takes place on Rodeira Beach, a 1.5 kilometers long urban beach in Cangas. For those who are not on the water, plenty of activities are available on shore. There are photo exhibitions, a book fair, and in the morning everyone can participate in yoga or aerobics on the beach. In daytime, there are mountainbike and 4x4 races. In the evening, sailors and visitors can enjoy live music, from jazz to folk music. www.hobiecangas2006.com |
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| Last Updated ( Friday, 21 July 2006 ) |
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