Lankan "Optimist" sailors off to Thailand

by Richard Dwight

Sri Lanka is fielding a seven member team at the 2005 International Optimist Dinghy Association (IODA) Championship to be held at Pattaya, Thailand from 28th October to 6th of November 2005. This event is billed to attract over 100 junior sailors across Asia and seen as on important raining opportunity in the run up to the 2006 Asian Games in Doha.

The Sri Lankan team has been undergoing intensive training under former Asian games sailing bronze medallist Lalin Jirasinghe. The Sri Lankan Optimist team won a bronze at the recent "ASEAN" Optimist Sailing Championship held at Port Dickson - Malaysia in August 2005.

The Optimist class is open to boys and girls up to the year in which they reach their 15th birthday. At present 15 children are in regular training of which the national selectors have chosen seven to represent Sri Lanka with the approval of Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs Jeevan Kumaratunga.