British Sailing Team inspire a new generation of sailors

by RYA on 10 Sep 2016 The Port of Dartmouth Royal Regatta welcomed the British Sailing Team back to the UK with a celebratory homecoming event on Saturday 27th August.

The British Sailing Team were in high spirits thanks to being the World's 'top sailing nation'. A total of 12 members of the British Sailing Team, including Giles Scott, Hannah Mills and Nick Dempsey, were in attendance at the event to celebrate their success with the public and inspire a new generation of sailors.

Members of the team helped introduce youngsters to the sport by showing them how to handle a dinghy on a sailing simulator at the Volvo stand in Coronation Park. Visitors arrived in their hundreds to show support for the team and have their photo taken with the athletes.

Finn Class sailor and gold medallist, Giles Scott said: 'Thank you to everyone who turned out for the Team Volvo homecoming, it was great to see so much support. We are very happy to be sharing our success with the public at an event with such rich maritime history, and we hope to give something back to the sport we love by inspiring people to try sailing.'

Hosted by double Olympic gold medallist and Volvo ambassador Shirley Robertson OBE, an exclusive Q&A session took place in the afternoon for local sailors and juniors at the Dartmouth Yacht Club, followed by a mainstage appearance in the Royal Avenue Gardens for the huge crowd of visitors and locals who gathered to share in the athletes' success.

470 sailor and gold medallist, Hannah Mills said: 'It's great to be back in the UK. Dartmouth is a beautiful place and we're looking forward to a few days off here. As a young sailor, meeting Sir Ben Ainslie was very inspiring for me; I hope Team Volvo can do the same to help encourage young sailors to strive for success.'

2016 was Volvo Car UK's first year as Principal Sponsor to the Port of Dartmouth Royal Regatta, a successful and memorable event that furthers Volvo's commitment to Driving British Sailing.