Thousands of sailing and watersports fanatics from across the UK came together at Farnborough International this past weekend (26-27 February) for the new-look RYA Dinghy and Watersports Show, presented by Suzuki.
“It was a new beginning for the show, and we were delighted to welcome over 7,000 visitors,” said RYA director of sport development Rob Clark. “After moving the event online last year, it was brilliant to be finally opening the doors for a live event in our new venue.
“The atmosphere was buzzing as visitors browsed the boats and watersports equipment, took part in the interactive sessions and got involved in the expert talk sessions.
“It was great to see people catching up with old friends and just getting excited about spending time on the water this year. Once again, we really appreciate the support from our title sponsor Suzuki.”
Featuring dinghy sailing, windsurfing, wingsurfing, foiling and paddle boarding, the show was officially opened by Olympic Gold medallists Dylan Fletcher and Eilidh McInytre.
The three stages (Suzuki Main Stage, Knowledge Zone and new Watersports Stage) attracted crowds with popular talks including British Sailing Team tactician Mark Rushall, windsurfing expert Peter Hart and record-breaking paddler Brendon Prince.
Talks with top sailing talent and more were just some of the attractions at this year’s show | Credit: RYA
New for 2022, the show welcomed a range of watersports and was the perfect opportunity to launch the new RYA Wing Training Scheme, the latest watersports craze which uses a handheld wing to propel a board on the water
Once again, Sailors Corner was the place to be to meet sailing heroes including Sail GP’s Matt Gotrel and members of the British Sailing Team. The SailGP VR headset experience was a popular choice for all ages with visitors competing against eSailing Champion Mike O’Donovan on Virtual Regatta.
Prizes and awards were celebrated throughout the weekend as Budworth Sailing Club were crowned RYA and Yachts and Yachting Club of the Year and International Canoe, Sleeping Tiger was named winner of the Concours de’Elegance Trophy for ‘boat of the show’.
The RYA Musto Youth Awards celebrated the achievements of 10 inspirational young sailors whilst eight sailing clubs and the RYA’s OnBoard programme received a combined boost of £185,000 as part of the John Merricks Sailing Trust’s Legacy Awards.
Sustainability was high on the agenda and the 16 successful finalists of The Green Blue University Sailing Sustainability Challenge were welcomed onto the stage for the challenge’s award ceremony and prize draw.
It was also a great success for the exhibitors including boat builders, class associations, clubs and centres and retailers. Among them were representatives from GP14 Ireland, as previously reported on Afloat.ie.
Clark added: “Thank you to everyone who came to the show and to all our exhibitors, sponsor and media partners for making it happen. We hope you all enjoyed it as much as we did, and we hope to see you out on the water soon!”
