Anguilla KATS sailors earn Gold!

Anguilla Youth Sailing Team Brings Home Gold in International Youth Regatta

Anguilla has a lot of celebrating to do! The Anguilla Youth Sailing Club Team captured 1st place in the KATS 2011 Premier’s Cup International Youth Regatta held July 8th to 10th in Tortola.

The six-member team consisted of Kendall “Kenny” Richardson, Ethan “Rumple” Lloyd, Starlin Rosario, Romero “Butchie” Gumbs, Kadeem Joseph and Derick “Fritz” Carty. They out-sailed seven other teams from five neighboring islands, Peurto Rico and the USA in a hard fought competition, emerging victorious and bringing home top honors.

In the first photo, Team Anguilla Leads the pack in KATS Premier’s Cup Regatta.

With perfect sailing conditions of 10 – 15 knot winds, Team Anguilla launched into first place from the beginning, taking five 1st place wins and one 2nd on Saturday morning. The dazzling start to the weekend filled Team Anguilla with great confidence for racing the IC24’s, boats which Anguilla race only during this annual competition.

In the second photo, Team Anguilla Sails Around Mark in KATS Premier’s Cup Regatta

Sailing got a little tougher for Team Anguilla in the afternoon. With a required boat change, a few bad starts and short courses, the team had difficulty fighting their way to the lead during the last six races of the day. Final afternoon results were varied with a 2nd, a 5th, a 4th, a 1st, and two 3rd place finishes and St. Croix had a 1 point lead over Anguilla.

Team Anguilla showed up on Sunday with renewed focus and determination knowing that the final six races were going to be hard fought battles with their fiercest competitors from St. Croix. Anguilla’s positive attitude and their stellar racing tactics proved a winning combination as they battled it out for 1st place. Sunday’s racing proved spectacular with ideal sailing conditions and a fantastic effort from the entire team that led to their eventual success.

“I am very proud of this team”, said AYSC Sailing Instructor, Chris Simon. “We don’t have IC 24 boats in Anguilla. These guys are used to sailing the two-person 420’s. With almost no experience in these boats, the team adapted very quickly and worked together really well as a team. They all have a lot to be proud of. They sailed a great event from the first race to the last. Team Anguilla has shown themselves to be first class sailors who not only can compete on an international level, but they can be champions!”


Team Anguilla receiving Gold Medals and Trophies in KATS Premier’s Cup International Youth Regatta in Tortola.

Left to Right - Rotary Club of Anguilla, Seymour Hodge; Romero Gumbs; Kadeem Joseph; Derick Carty; Starlin Rosario; Kenny Richardson; Sailing Instructor, Chris Simon; Deputy Premier and Minister for Health & Social Development, BVI, Hon. Dancia Penn Q.C; Rotary Club of Anguilla, Harris Richardson

Final scores of the racing were: Anguilla, 42 points; St. Croix, 46 points; St. Lucia, 66 points; BVI 68 points; Puerto Rico, 71 points; Antigua, 103 points; Grenada, 115 points; and USA, 135 points.

Kids and the Sea (KATS), along with the Rotary, Rotaract and Interact Clubs of the BVI annually host the Premier’s Cup International Youth Regatta at Nanny Cay Resort in Tortola.

The Rotary Club of Anguilla annually sponsors the Anguilla Youth Sailing Club team to attend the Premier’s Cup in Tortola.

“After ten years, Rotary Club of Anguilla has finally seen its investment come to fruition. Rotary has believed and invested in the youth sailors for many years and are extremely proud of their capturing gold medal excellence!” says Rotary Club Team Leader, Harris Richardson. “Last year, Team Anguilla won 2nd place in the regatta, so this year’s 1st place win is another testament to their excellent sailing abilities and hard work.”

The Rotary Club of Anguilla and the Anguilla Sailing Association would like to thank the Caribbean Commercial Bank of Anguilla, D3 Insurance, Anguilla Aluminum, Apex Hardware, Caribbean Juris Chambers, Caribbean Associated Attorneys of Anguilla, Mr & Mrs. Peter Oliver and all the members of the Rotary Club of Anguilla for their financial support for this event.

The Anguilla Sailing Association is the parent organization of the AYSC. Their mandate is to provide all Anguilla children with the opportunity to sail while learning seamanship, boat safety, environmentalism, and leadership skills. The children of Anguilla today are growing up in an environment that offers a limited number of wholesome activities that foster confidence and self-worth. Having an opportunity to participate in what is an international sport as well as embracing the national sport of Anguilla is vital to the future of our youth.