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As President of the RYA, HRH The Princess Royal joined RYA staff and volunteers to signal the start of a new chapter in the history of the RYA.

RYA staff, volunteers and their families were joined by youngsters from; Hamble River Sailing Club, 'K Class' the new Poole based powerboat class, RYA Sailability and the RYA's Team 15 youth initiative, in welcoming the President of the RYA, HRH The Princess Royal. Speeches by Chairman George Clark and the President preceded the ribbon cutting ceremony. The Princess was then escorted on a tour of the new buildings where she met members of RYA staff.

Chief Executive Rod Carr commented, 'The relocation is only one step in the process of change that we are undergoing and this is an exciting time for the RYA and the sports we represent. As we look forward to the season ahead we will continue to work for everyone, from sending our sailors to glory in Athens 2004 to helping more people than ever get on the water.'

The move to Hamble follows a great year for boating that has seen significant increases in RYA membership and numbers participating in RYA training courses, not to mention a rise to the top of the world rankings by RYA Team GBR.

The new premises will provide an excellent, modern and efficient working environment for the RYA Team to move forward and carry out its multiple roles more effectively, assemble all RYA services under one roof to improve operational efficiency, enable the RYA to serve the needs of its members and the wider boating community for years to come and allow for the retention of specialist staff, expert in their respective fields, to continue providing professional guidance and advice on both sail and power issues.