Contributed by Jason Lim

Singapore, Monday, July 18, 2011 — Singapore will be hosting the 21st edition of the Asian Optimist Championships this weekend and OCBC Bank has come onboard as the title sponsor of this event. The championships will take place from July 22nd to 29th.

This event brings together the top Optimist sailors from the Asian continent with additional
participating teams in the open category from Australia, Brazil, Czech Republic, Netherlands Antilles and New Zealand. A total of 118 sailors from 20 countries will be vying for honours at the week long event held off Singapore?s East Coast Beach.

Singapore’s Kimberly Lim will be defending her title at these championships but this time around, the 15-year-old Tanjong Katong Girl’s School student, who won the 2010 event in Pattaya, Thailand, will have to contend with fellow competitor, Yukie Yokoyama, who is currently
the top-ranked Singaporean. Malaysia’s Faizal Norizan, who finished third last year is also another potential title contender.

CEO of Singapore Sailing Federation, Tan Wearn Haw, was the winner of the inaugural championships in 1990.

“Crossing the finishing line of the final race 21 years ago still remains etched in my mind, and little would I imagine how that experience inspired me to carve an interesting career in sailing which took me to many major Games and even the America’s Cup!

“But more importantly, it has fostered many strong friendships that continue to this day. The trophies of yesteryears are no longer to be found but these bonds and friendships with both my Singaporean and foreign competitors have lasted the test of time. We fought hard on the water, but we respected each other and remained firm friends on land,” said Wearn Haw.

2011 Singapore Optimist Team
Elisa Yukie Yokoyama
Joshua Matthew Lim Tze Han
Kimberly Lim Min
Ryan Lo Jun Han
Bernie Chin Cheok Khoon
Jillian Lee Sook Ying
Jessica Goh Kai Ling
Bryan Lee Teik Leung
Andre Chew Jann
Audrey Lim Jia Min
Samuel Neo Jiun Jie
Loh Jia Yi
Samantha Annabelle Neubronner
Justin Chew Hanyi
Koh Yi Kun
Ryan Teo Yee Kang
Reynard Lee
Fathin Rasyiqin Bte Mohd Firdaus
Matthew Scott Lau Wen Jiang
Keith Lee Chang Foo

Past Singapore Winners
1990 Tan Wearn Haw (Open), Ng Xuan Hui (Girl?s)
1991 Ng Xuan Hui (Girl?s)
1992 Ng Xuan Hui (Girl?s)
2003 Griselda Khng (Girl?s)
2004 Scott Glenn Sydney (Open)
2005 Sean Lee (Open), Jovina Choo (Girl?s)
2006 Sean Lee (Open), Griselda Khng (Girl?s)
2007 Luke Tan (Open), Rachel Lee Qing (Girl?s)
2010 Kimberly Lim (Open)

About the Boat
The Optimist is a small, single-handed sailing dinghy intended for use by children up to the age of 15. More commonly known as the “bathtub?, this class is over 50 years old and has been the breeding ground for many famous sailors.

Nowadays boats are usually made of fiber reinforced plastic, although wooden boats are still built. It is one of the most popular sailing dinghies in the world, with over 130,000 boats officially registered with the class and perhaps many more built but never registered.

The Optimist is recognized as an International Class by the International Sailing Federation.

Event Details
Daily racing will be held off the National Sailing Centre at East Coast Park. Free parking is available at Car Park G.

For info on Optimist sailing, log onto: http://www.optiworld.org/

For up-to-date info, and live race tracking during the Championships, log onto:
http://asianoptimist.sailing.org.sg/