King's Cup Returns To Phuket Island

Tracing back its 23 year old roots, The King's Cup Regatta will bring back dinghy racing. There will be two full days of racing the tiny vessels before the main event that takes place on 28 and 29 November.

The prizes for the winning teams will be handed out on the night of Sunday the 29th, and the partying will ensue from there. A total of 29 sailors will go for gold, racing in crafts such as Lasers, Tasars and Topper Topazes.

The event is set to take place off the shores of Kata beach on the west coast of Koh Phuket. Six lucky children are entered into the prestigious event from the Phuket Sunshine Village. Their hard work and dedication over the past year has been recognized and they are to be given a chance to take part. Paul and Kay from Topper Sail Phuket will supervise the children's progress.

The lucky six, as they have been given the moniker, of will be racing in the four Topper Topazes, which have been generously donated by Topper Sail Phuket. The hopeful youngsters will be joining Swedish and Thai sailors from the Phuket Yacht Club.

The Phuket Yacht Club's commodore Katy Gooch said, “Our club's mission is to bring forward dinghy racing off Phuket island. The sailing and the competitive nature of the race will hopefully encourage the local community to participate more.” Out of the 29 sailors, 18 are Thai.

By bringing more local participants to the regatta, yacht and dinghy racing will grow into a more popular sport. With Koh Phuket having fairly mild racing conditions during late November to February, there is a large window to make the sport the island's favorite. There are so many beaches and opportunities for water sports, including sail racing, it is a wonder why there is only a handful of racers.

The competitors and organizers are hopeful of yet another successful King's Cup Regatta, that next year should bring more sailors. The dinghy sales and yachts available to rent will make the 24thPKCR even more exciting.