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The Junior Gold Cup will run concurrently with the 58th annual ISAF Grade WC King Edward VII Gold Cup. The events differ in more than just their amateur and professional status. The pros are racing for prize money, but the Junior Gold Cup is about more than racing.

More Than Just A Regatta

The international junior sailors, ages 13 to 15, are selected by national Optimist associations. They are flown to Bermuda by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, hosted by local families and gain an insight to Bermuda culture by spending a day in school with their hosts.

'The event grew out of an idea we had in 2002 and subsequent discussions with the International Optimist Association,' said Les CRANE, chairman of the King Edward VII Gold Cup. 'We wanted to ensure that it would be something that would go down well with other Optimist countries and it has been well received.'

The International Optimist Association has fleets in more than 100 countries and is raced by more than 150,000 junior sailors.

Final Qualification Regatta For Worlds

The Junior Gold Cup is the final qualification regatta to select the Bermuda Optimist Sailing Team that will compete at the Optimist Worlds in Uruguay at the end of the year.

Part one of the trials was held earlier this year and the top five contenders (in order) are Joshua GREENSLADE, James ANFOSSI, Jordan SAINTS, Haley POWELL and Jason SAINTS.

International entries have been received from Australia (Edward CAMPBELL), Finland (Hanna HENTINEN), France (Sacha PENISON and Yvann THELIER), Denmark (Jes Lynne BOND), Great Britain (Philip SPARKS), New Zealand (Marcus HANSEN), Switzerland (Kasper KELLER), the USA (Pearson POTTS) and Uruguay (Manfredo FINCK).

The Schedule

The Junior Gold Cup will conduct four fleet races per day from 12 -14 October on Great Sound. The final day, Sunday 15 October, will see the championship sailed on Hamilton Harbour during the final rounds of the King Edward VII Gold Cup.

The Gold Cup is stage four of the 2006-2007 World Match Racing Tour for the ISAF Match Racing World Championship.

The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club is a private club and is the third oldest club holding a Royal Warrant outside the British Isles. The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club was established on 1 November 1844, and now has approximately 850 resident and non-resident members.

The Bermuda Department of Tourism is an Official Host Sponsor of the Gold Cup. Event sponsors include Renaissance Re, Max Re, Bermuda Telephone, Bermuda Premium Spirits and Oleander Cycle.

The Bermuda Optimist Dinghy Association thanks Renaissance Reinsurance for sponsoring the Junior Gold Cup for the fourth consecutive year and to the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club for being a great supporter of junior sailing in Bermuda.