Setting up Sailing in the Solomons

At the 2023 Pacific Games the Solomon Islands will host a strong sailing competition.

A site visit by Technical Delegates David Brookes and Clint Flood from the Pacific Games project planning team has helped set the Solomon Islands up to run a good sailing competition at the 2023 Pacific Games.

There were six sites reviewed with Clint Flood and Ken Grossmith from the 2023 Pacific Games Secretariat. The sites were Solomon Islands National University (Ranadi Beach), Point Cruz Yacht Club, Pacific Games Organising Sea King office, Guadalcanal Beach Resort (GBR), DC Park and USP Campus City Centre.

Fortunately sailing can be run with Va’a events and this shares the cost and doubles the benefit of and building or works done for the 2023 Pacific Games. All sites had their strengths and opportunities and provide a good perspective of options.

Sailing is a compulsory sport at the 2023 Pacific Games, with strong appearances over many editions of the event from nations such as the host Solomon Islands, Cook Islands, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea and Samoa, who have all competed in the last four Pacific Games. The Oceania Sailing Federation is working hard to ensure other pacific island nations like American Samoa and Wallis and Futuna make their sailors competitive. The unknown quantity is how Australia and New Zealand will participate, with the former having made a strong showing in Samoa 2019.

 

By Glen Stanaway