As well as national championship honours the regatta will provide the first domestic indication of strength following a flurry of activity that includes the arrival of several new one off boats.
The first team announcement broke late last year and news yesterday (Thurs) that Colm Barrington, Conor and Denise Phelan and Anthony O'Leary are to be joined by a second ICRA team came as no real surprise.
The class 1 boat of the second three boat team is skippered by Dublin Bay Sailing Commodore's Tim Costello 2005. Tiamat, a Mills 40, had a very successful first season last year and was a dominant force at the Scottish Series as well as a class winner in Cowes.
The Dublin bay boat will have Cork and Belfast team-mates.
Cork based Eamonn Rohan is the owner of the newly commissioned Corby 37, she has yet to be named but is going under the working title of Blondie III and will be the Class 2 boat in the team.
Andrew Allen's and Colm Monahan's Belfast based J 109 No Naked Flames‚ fills the Class Three boat slot. In 2005, her successes included coming second in her class at Cowes Week, winning Strangford Week and being tied
with Anthony O'Leary's Antix‚ at Dun Laoghaire Week, only to finish second on count back.
A third ICRA team has yet to be announced but it is expected Cork boats and possibly a UK boat that satisfied the nationality rule will figure.
While there maybe doubt over this third team there is certainty that the season will kick off for these and cruiser-racer crews at the Royal Irish Yacht Club for the third staging of the ICRA Nationals and over 100 boats are expected.
The event marks one of the biggest events for Dun Laoghaire this season and its early billing on May 12th provides a good start to the season. Dun Laoghaire aims to build on the ICRA championships in 2007 with the staging of a second Dun Laoghaire week with dates already confirmed in the 2007 calendar as 12th-15th July.
Brian Craig is back in harness as event chair and aims to increase participation from UK and Cork sailors with a potential fleet size of over 500 boats.
Ireland's Ken Ryan is to be awarded the ISAF’s Beppe Croce Trophy, in recognition of his major contribution to sailing in Ireland and internationally. He will join a distinguished list of winners that includes King Olav V of Norway, Paul Elvstrom. King Juan Carlos of Spain, Olin Stephens, Mary Pera, and most recently, Paul Henderson.
Making the announcement, the ISAF paid tribute to Ken’s enormous contribution to the sport over four decades.
"Presented in recognition of outstanding voluntary contribution to the sport of sailing and ISAF, Ryan has dedicated more than 30 years to the development of the sport,” the ISAF statement said.
“Recently retired as ISAF Vice President in 2004, a position he held since 1998, Ryan's main focus during his 36 years as a volunteer for ISAF, and that for which he is justly proud, was the implementation and ongoing development of the ISAF Race Officials Programme.
Ryan of Blackrock Co. Dublin first attended a then IYRU Annual Conference in 1968 and has not missed a conference since. He has attended nine Olympic Games in one capacity or another, with his first involvement in 1972 as a member of the Irish team - and has been at every Olympics since.
Abroad, Light winds have hampered starts at this year's Enterprise world dinghy championships in Sri Lanka that is being led by Britain's Richard Estaugh and Pete Rowley on 16 points. A Pakistani crew Mamoon Sadiq and Abdul Hameed are second with Greystones Sailing Club's Shane McCarthy and Al Fry fourth on 37 points after six races sailed.
Irish Commodore's Cup teams
Magic Glove (Ker 50) Colm Barrington Royal Irish YC
Antix (Corby 35) Anthony O'Leary Royal Cork YC
Jump (Ker 37) Conor and Denise Phelan Royal Cork YC
Tiamat (Mills 40) Tim Costello Dun Laoghaire Motor YC
Blondie III (Corby 37) Eamon Rohan Royal Cork YC...
No naked flames (J109) Andrew Allen and Colm Monahan Royal North Ireland YC
