Fealofani Cup Regatta reunites the two Samoas through a love of sailing

03 December 2017, 12:00AM

On the weekend of 25 and 26 November the Apia Yacht Club hosted a regatta as the second leg of the Fealofani Cup sailing competition between Apia and Pago Pago at Mulinu’u.

 The dazzling sight of twenty-eight boats sailed by competitors aged between 7 and 62 years old sailing for individual and team honours warmed the hearts of Samoa’s sailing fans. 

Sailing conditions were testing over two days of fierce competition. 

Light winds for most of the weekend were broken by occasional squalls and thunderstorms bringing strong wind and driving rain. Despite the difficult conditions, sailors from Apia and Pago Pago were able to complete 8 races over two classes of sailboat – Optimist and Laser. 

Apia took out individual honours in all the races with Solomona Hamilton (11 years old) winning both the Under 11 and Open Division Optimist titles and veteran JICA Volunteer Kuni Masaki winning the Laser title. 

Apia and Pago Pago sailors were on the podium in second and third positions across the three divisions. Despite the individual success of Apia sailors, Pago Pago’s superior overall team performance saw them take out regatta series honours and secure the Fealofani Cup for 2017.

The regatta was the second in a two-stage series, Pago Pago hosting a regatta for the Optimist Class on beautiful Pago Pago harbour in October. 

The results in that regatta were similar with Apia taking out individual honours through Solomona Hamilton winning the Under 11 Optimist Division and Ayrton Hodson taking out the Open Division. 

03 December 2017, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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