45 COACHES AND SAILORS JOIN 420 CLASS HIGH LEVEL OCEANIA CLINIC
From 28-30 April 2018, Coaches and Sailors from across Oceania have joined the 420 Class High Level Clinic hosted at Takapuna Boating Club, New Zealand.
The aim of the clinic is to develop technical, tactical, sailing and organizational skills, as well as training information.
The opening day kicked off with a presentation to the 45 participants from Jose Massapina, 420 Class Vice President for Development, about 420 sailing and the opportunities the boat gives to young sailors around the world. In giving his presentation, Massapina also expressed thanks to John Tierney, Secretary General of the Oceania Sailing Federation, and Ralph Roberts, Commodore of the Takapuna Boating Club for organizing and hosting the clinic.
Alongside a strong New Zealand representation, participants have flown in to join the Clinic from Australia, Fiji, Cook Islands, Samoa, Singapore and the Solomon Islands.
The day did not bode well for on-waters sessions, with 40 knots of breeze keeping everyone ashore. So, the day was spent inside with the 420 Class appointed coach, Nikos Drougkas, speaking about the qualities of a coach, organization and planning of a training programme and boat tuning.
Day 2, Sunday 29 April, the weather is set to improve so a busy programme ahead, which will include boat preparation, boat handling, boat tuning, race strategy in a mix of theory and practical sessions.
Prior to the High Level Clinic, the 420 Class ran a Basic Level Clinic to share less advanced training knowledge and skills.
The 420 Class is delivering a package of 420 Class Development Programmes in 2018, which kicked off in the Bahamas, 15-18 March 2018.
The International 420 Class Association has always been at the forefront of running development programmes and sharing sailing knowledge, skills and techniques for sailors and coaches through online platforms, such as 420 to the Max and the 420 Exercise e-Book, as well as our development clinics and initiatives around the world.