British sailing greats, including triple Olympic gold medallist Ben Ainslie and London 2012 hopeful Hannah Mills, are among the previous winners, proving the value of this event in giving young people the skills to move into a career in sailing and become our next generation of Olympic stars.

Inland Champion Matt Whitfield

“The Optimist National Championships was the first major event I ever won and it really was a stepping stone for me. It is amazing that after winning the Optimist event 9 years ago I am now getting ready to compete at the Pre-Olympic Test Event. The National Championships are a fantastic event for young sailors to compete in and it is such an achievement for the class to celebrate its 50th anniversary. It is a great that year on year the class is growing in popularity and size” said Hannah Mills who was the first female to ever win the Nationals, and currently sails a 470 with Saskia Clark.

Regatta Fleet Champion Will Heathcote

This year the event has welcomed competitors from 15 nations including, France, Germany, Holland, Spain, Portugal, Finland, USA, UAE, Russia, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Kenya, Bermuda - a mouth-watering prospect for some great racing during the week.

It is the eleventh year that Volvo Car UK has sponsored the Optimist Sailing class in the UK and they are excited to be working with new joint title sponsor and sailing clothing specialist, Gill.

“We are looking forward to being involved in our first Volvo Gill Optimist National Championships. A fleet of 450 young sailors together on the water will be a remarkable sight and the 50th anniversary is wonderful achievement for the class. The Gill design and development team will be there on Wednesday 3rd August to answer questions from the competitors and research what today's Optimist sailors are looking for to improve their comfort and competitiveness on the water.” commented Nick Gill, founder and Chairman of Gill.

Regatta Fleet Champion Will Heathcote

The Optimist class is a crucial part of Volvo’s and Gill’s commitment to supporting British sailing from the grass roots to the pinnacle of the sport.

“Once again we have received a fantastic amount of entries for the Volvo Gill Optimist National Championships. We are all looking forward to heading to Pwllheli and expecting some exiting racing.  The great thing about the event is many of the sailors competing will be attending as much for fun and a family holiday as for the racing.  In addition to the sailing, we have lots of activities for competitors and parents during the week including beach games, parties and evening films. We hope everyone can really enjoy the week." commented Marshal King, International Optimist Class Association, UK Chairman.

http://www.optimistsailing.org.uk/