(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) Buoyed by the exposure to the Omani teams at the world level that has also helped local talent grow into top-class sailors Oman Sail has ventured out on yet another top-class event.
This time it is launching a boat Sultanate of Oman to compete in the inaugural Bullitt GC32 Racing Tour which begins in the Austrian city of Traunsee on May 27. The five-leg European Tour will see eight teams vie for the top honours with the final leg to be held in Marseille France from September 30-October 3.
The skipper of The Wave Muscat (TWM) and two-time winner of the Extreme Sailing Series (ESS) Leigh McMillan has been named the skipper of Sultanate of Oman. He will be joined by his TWM teammates Nasser al Mashari of Oman and Britain's Peter Greenhalgh. The names of other two crew members will be announced soon.
'This is something new and fits in perfectly with everything Oman Sail is trying to achieve' said McMillan. 'The new series will give us more opportunities to develop our Omani crew mates and extend the reach of Oman tourism into Europe.'
The new campaign is backed by Oman's Ministry of Tourism and co-sponsor EFG Bank Monaco.
The remaining four legs will take the teams to take part in Cowes Cup UK (June 24-27) Kiel Germany (July 30-August 2) Rome Italy (August 27-30) and Marseille.
The GC32 campaign will dovetail with Oman Sail's continued Extreme 40 and MOD70 activities that have already contributed to the Oman's high profile across premium tourism markets throughout Singapore Australia UK China Turkey Russia Germany Italy and France.
McMillan is excited about his team's prospects and what the campaign means for the future of Omani sailing.
'Our Omani sailors are ambitious and aspirational and want to be competing at the top level of sport and the GC32 fulfills those ambitions.'
'The future of the sport quite clearly is in foiling and as sailing technology moves on we need to move with it or there is a danger we will get left behind.'
Leigh McMillan the team's skipper
'We have a lot of work to do before the first event in Austria but we are confident we will pick it up quickly and we will push hard and hopefully be competitive. We have a bunch of talented sailors who learn quickly and that will be to our advantage. We can't wait to get foiling.'
Oman Sail's CEO David Graham said 'Oman Sail has enjoyed considerable success in developing our Omani sailing talent through international competition while also contributing to raising Oman's profile as a high-end tourist destination over the last few years.'
'We are confident the new GC32 campaign will bring the same level of success. We are committed to staying at the forefront of the sport and this represents a great opportunity to explore new areas and step up the development of our Omani sailors.'
H E Maitha al Mahrouqi Undersecretary of the Ministry of Tourism of Oman and Chairwoman of Oman Sail said 'We have seen the benefits of using the sport of sailing in giving Oman exposure as a high-end tourist destination.
'The Bullitt GC32 Racing Tour takes that one step further as it creates great visibility for Oman in some of our strategic markets such as the UK France Germany and Italy.'
Flavio Marazzi President of the GC32 Owner's Association welcomed the Oman Sail team. 'It is great news for the Bullitt GC32 family to have the two-time Extreme 40 Champion Oman Sail competing with its catamaran legend Leigh McMillan at the helm.
'Oman Sail has shown in different sailing project how fast they can improve and win major championships. For sure new teams such as this will push the Bullitt GC32 Race Tour to the next level.'
Participating teams:
Alinghi Armin Strom Sailing Team Spindrift racing Sultanate of Oman Team Argo 32 Team ENGIE Team SPAX Solution Team ZouLou.
About the GC32 Class
Designed by Dr Martin Fischer the GC32 shares many similarities with the foiling America's Cup AC72 catamarans but free from rule constraints has been conceived from the outset as a better foiler.
Foil is the nautical vernacular mounted under the hull of a boat. As the speed increases of the boat the foils lift the hull up and out of the water to give a push to a catamaran speed.
The GC32 class races in America's Cup-style courses on foiling catamarans and is capable of speeds well in excess of 30 knots (top speed to date is 37.9).
The boats are fitted with a conventional catamaran rig with rotating mast and three sails (main jib and genniker).
It is a one design right down to the sails and number of teams can use during a season preventing escalating costs and making the class more inclusive.
As the boat is relatively light it is easily transported by road. The boat and rig can be fitted on to a custom-built open trailer or into a container on wheels.
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