2023 Flying Fifteen World and Australian Championships update
by Humphrey Hale 6 Jan 2022 22:24 PST
9-23 March 2023
Flying Fifteen World and Australian Championships © Thomas Hodge
With all the chaos around the World and the Covid-19 pandemic still raging on, I am sure people are wondering what is happening with the World Championship event being held in Australia. I can confirm that the Flying Fifteen World and Australian Championships remain on track and are scheduled to be held between the 9th and 23rd March 2023 as previously notified.
The event was delayed due to the uncertainty surrounding the global Covid 19 pandemic which still continues, and the situation continues to evolve. Australia and in particular Western Australia closed its borders to the rest of the World and as such has been relatively Covid19 free for most of the pandemic. Now the borders are being opened to the rest of the World as the population has reached a high level of vaccination. We expect that Western Australia will open its borders to international visitors on February 5th, 2022, giving the Organising Committee confidence that the World Championship can go ahead in March 2023. The March timetable has been chosen as the weather conditions are generally more forgiving at this time of year.
The event will be sailed out of Fremantle Sailing Club on the pristine waters of Owen Anchorage in the Indian Ocean offshore Fremantle. The facilities at Fremantle Sailing Club are World class and Fremantle is renowned throughout the World for its unique sailing conditions. The proposed course area at Owen Anchorage is a location that has been used for numerous World Championship events, including the Perth 2011 ISAF World Championships and hosted National and International Sailing events for the Dragon fleet, Etchell's and 505's amongst others.
Planning for the event is well advanced with jurors and race officers selected, we look forward to welcoming the Wilson brothers to the event as race officers who have conducted many world championships between them. The Organising Committee recognises that at present shipping costs for containerised freight around the World are high, as they are being affected by the results of the OCVID pandemic. It is expected that this will settle down by the time international visitors need to book passage for their boats. The organising authority is working on streamlining the process of shipping boats. Further details can be found on the World Championship website at www.flying15worlds2022.com
Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club with support from South of Perth Yacht Club looks forward to welcoming competitors to Fremantle, and in particular, the many visitors expected from Overseas and the East Coast. This event is well supported by the local government and community so you can rest assured that visitors to Fremantle will be treated to a good show.