Thank you to Regatta Chair Rod Gardner for sharing the Press Release below. Ontario Sailing has sinced learned that the 2023 Shark World Championships has been awarded Gold Level Clean Regattas Certification from Sailors for the Sea, an impressive achievement in only one year championing the sustainable regatta program!
“Well Sailed Since 1959”
The 56th Shark World Championship came to a close on Friday, August 25th in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Sailors from Austria, Germany, the US and across Canada came to Niagara-on-the-Lake to participate in the event. In total, 48 crews competed in 10 races over six days. The Niagara Sailors took the top honours and also won the Bill Metzger Trophy.
- 1st Place Crunch – World Championship – Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club (Crew – Josh Wiwcharyk, Chris Clarke, and Alex Letchford)
- 2nd Place – Rampant – Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club (Crew – Levi Harper, Jacob Harper and Malcolm Harper)
- 3rd Place – Rocket Appliance – Royal Hamilton Yacht Club (Crew – Dave Castle, Dane Broe and Jessica Broe-Vayda)
Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club Shark, Amicus, won the long-distance race and the Bill Metzger Trophy for top hours in the practice race, the long-distance race and the last race.
Crew – Mark Schantz, Dave Schantz and Ken Greer
The George Hinterhoeller Award was presented to Jinnie Gordon, of Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club, for her commitment to promoting women’s sailing and her dedication to the Shark Class.
There is another story bigger than the racing
The event team followed the Sailor for the Sea Clean Regatta protocols and achieved the Gold Standard. Only two bags of garbage were created over seven days with six meals being served to 200 people and a full bar every evening. Everything was reusable, compostable, or recyclable. As an example of the materials selected, the cutlery was made from recycled coffee grounds and is fully compostable. The Niagara Region provided their Water Wagon, refillable water bottles, and extra green bins for composting. All participants were advised in advance of the plan to be a Clean Regatta and made an effort to follow our procedures. All participants and volunteers were given a 12 oz beverage cup for hot and cold drinks to use throughout the week. If they didn’t bring their cup, they didn’t get a drink! Simple rules for sailors to follow! This was extremely successful and evident in how easy the clean-up was each day and at the end of the regatta.
https://www.niagararegion.ca/living/water/water-wagon.aspx
https://www.sailorsforthesea.org/programs
Thank you to all participants and volunteers for being part of such a memorable event.
Rod Gardner
Regatta Chair
Niagara on the Lake Sailing Club – The home of the Shark 24
Photos of the event, by Jim Schacht, can be found at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/64797692@N02/sets/72177720310539770/
