Displaying items by tag: Tour de BelleIle

10th May 2015

Dun Laoghaire Sailor Is Class Winner of French 'Tour de Belle-Ile'

Dun Laoghaire offshore sailor Kenny Rumball has won his class in the Tour de Belle-Ile Race onboard the Open 7.50m 'Cool Runnings'.

Rumball, the owner/operator of the Irish National Sailing School in Dun Laoghaire, was crewing onboard the Jochem Visser skippered yacht with Thorkild Juncker and Tom Whitburn. Rumball told Afloat.ie he found the big 500–boat French race fleet 'hard to comprehend'. See vid above.

The Tour de Belle-Ile is a sailing event created in 2008 and open to all sailing yachts measuring 6,50 metres or more, and is the French equivalent of the UK's Round the Island Race.

The Tour de Belle-Ile is around 41 nautical miles: starting from the middle of the bay of Quiberon (Brittany, France), rounding of Belle Île leaving the island to port and returning to the departure/finish line.

A month ago, Rumball finished sixth overall at Spi Ouest regatta in western France, on the same boat.

Published in Offshore

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About the Watersports Inclusion Games

The Watersports Inclusion Games are an award-winning event organised by Irish Sailing with partners from across the watersports sector, that enable people of all abilities from the physical, sensory, intellectual and learning spectrums to take to the water to participate in a wide range of water activities.

More than 250 people with physical, sensory, intellectual and learning disabilities typically take part in the weekend's events.

Participants will have the opportunity to try more sports than ever before, with an expanded range including sailing, kayaking, canoeing, paddle-boarding, rowing, surfing, water skiing and powerboating all on offer.

The Games typically take place each August.

The organisers of the Games want to let people of all abilities know that there are multiple watersports available to them, and to encourage more people from all backgrounds to get involved and out on the water regardless of ability. They aim to highlight that any barriers faced by people with disabilities can be eliminated.

There are social, health and wellness benefits associated with sailing and all watersports. These include improved muscle strength and endurance, improved cardiovascular fitness and increased agility, enhanced spatial awareness, greater mental wellness through the balancing of serotonin levels and the lowering of stress levels, improved concentration and the forging of positive relationships.