Muscat: Oman’s first ever all-Omani offshore racing team have made history this week with a spirited performance in the competitive and challenging Tour of Bretagne. Sami al Shukaili and Ali al Balushi teamed-up to compete against 36 other teams, including many of Europe’s offshore racing elite, in the high-performance two-handed Figaro 3 yacht. The duo got off to a flying start with a remarkable 5th place on the leg from St Brieuc to St Malo, the first stage of the classic week-long race around France’s rugged north west coastline.
The experienced and long-standing Oman Sail members faced the full range of conditions as the event progressed. Strong winds of up to 40 knots, big seas and fast sailing tested the crew on the long 285-mile second leg from St Malo to Brest which took the fleet far out into the English Channel.
However the breeze dropped later in the week, with later stages offering the very different challenge of light air sailing and tactics. One leg of the event was also cancelled when the wind disappeared completely.
The Omani pair completed the final stage in La Trinité-sur-Mer on Saturday, finishing in 29th place overall in the 37-strong fleet and reaching their pre-Tour goal of a top-30 finish.
“We are both very happy though it was tough and hard,” said skipper Al Shukaili. “For me the highlight of the whole event was not just the result, but to be able to sail fast and clean throughout.
“Early in the week it was very windy with strong gusts in the night, but we were able to keep the boat safe and, the most important thing, keep ourselves safe as well. It’s part of the game to have strong wind and light wind, and we had both through the regatta. The very light wind was a new experience as we had not had that while training.
“We were racing against many very good sailors, but we were able to compete and fight in the middle of the fleet, and we kept on pushing hard’’.
His crewmate Al Balushi was equally delighted with their performance.
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