United We Sail - Sailing bridges gaps of racial barriers

by Smitha Ramamurthy on 9 Jun 2010 For Indian student Ajay Rau, the sport of sailing has bridged the gaps of racial barriers and launched a platform for cultural harmony.

As a journalism student and professional sailor studying at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Ajay has immersed himself in the Australian way of life and his multicultural surroundings being elected as the Secretary of the UNSW Windsurfing and Sailing Club. For him, the language of sport transcends ethnic and lingual differences because it is a stage that allows everyone to participate, regardless of race.

'When you're on the water, you're not looked at as just an Australian or Indian. You are purely judged on your skills as a sailor,' Ajay says. 'I don't consider myself as Ajay the Indian. I am Ajay. I have an identity.'

Having organised a number of sailing events for the club, he has made lasting relationships with students from various parts of the globe.

'I'm friends with an Italian guy who doesn't even speak proper English but he understands me and I understand him,' he says. 'And that's what Australia is. It's a beautiful place because it has adopted so many cultures and in that way it's very similar to India because there is so much diversity.'

Ajay was appalled by the recent attacks on fellow Indian students in Melbourne and Sydney. Yet he strongly believes that the attackers represent a small minority of Australians, and not the larger Australian community.

He says that in every society, there are minority groups whotake advantage of vulnerable people who are away from their homes and are therefore easy targets. Ajay adds that similarly in India, it is more common for a foreigner rather than a local to be robbed or assaulted by a minority group of people, who do not share the morals and attitudes of most Indians.

Ajay says that his enthusiasm to get involved with sporting activities and social events outside of the Indian community has allowed him to effectively integrate within the wider Australian community.

'I feel that back in India people should make more of an effort to educate students to learn to adapt to different countries before coming to Australia, and not be closed within your society,' Ajay says. 'All of us are very proud Indians but that doesn't mean that we have to stay only with each other.'

'I believe that it doesn't matter if you're Indian, Chinese or Australian, everyone has their comforts and I think you should take these rare opportunities to get out of your comfort zones because you don't know whether you will ever have these opportunities again,' he says.

The UNSW Windsurfing and Sailing Club's recent collaboration with the UNSW German Society resulted in a multicultural sailing day out during the ANZAC Day long weekend. Members of both clubs were invited to wear their national colours and take pride in displaying the diversity of cultures coexisting in Australia.

'If you look at history, the Australians and New Zealanders went to Turkey to fight the Germans and today who would've known that people from different countries such as Germany and Australia would actually be enjoying a barbeque on the beach,' he notes.

Ajay accepts that negative issues such as racism and cultural differences will happen from time to time in every society, but it is important to move forward towards reconciliation rather than contemplate about the past.

'And that day had Australians, Germans, Greeks, Swedes and Americans. It's saying a lot about where Australia is today and where humanity is going,' he says. 'We're all proud of where we're from but it is high time that we leave our differences aside and just enjoy each other's company.'

He has recently participated in the Sydney to Hobart Yachting Race, making him the first Indian to do so in the history of the event. According to him, it is one of the most 'Aussie' things a person can do.