The Women’s International Match Racing Series (WIM Series) has announced that the 8th annual Carlos Aguilar Match Race (CAMR), presented by the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism and set for Dec. 1 – 4, will be the fifth finale event of the 2016 WIM Series. The CAMR, known for bringing some of the best international match racing talent from America’s Cup veterans to current World Champions to sail in the scenic yet challenging Charlotte Amalie Harbor, will now host 12 of the finest women’s match racers from around the globe.
With her Team Epic Racing of the USA, Roble won the 2015 WIM Series, finished second overall to the U.S.V.I.’s Taylor Canfield at the 2015 CAMR, and expects to sail the 2016 WIM Series finale at the CAMR. “I love the shifty, puffy conditions the Charlotte Amalie Harbor produces. Coming from lake sailing, this is natural to me. My team is really good at shifts and transitions. It’s fun because you are never out of a race nor are you ever safe with your lead! Being a North American event, it will kind of be our home turf, so we will be excited to be representing the USA and going for a repeat of winning the WIM Series,” Roble said.
WIM Series and CAMR organizers are excited to bring another world-class sailing event to St. Thomas. “Our spectacular waterfront will play host to the top female sailors in the world this December. This is a change for us this year, but will only increase international interest as it’s a spectacular combination of the best of women’s match racing in one of the world’s best sailing venues,” said Bill Canfield, co-director of the regatta with Verian Aguilar Tuttle.
Early entrants include Roble and Sweden’s Anna Östling, the 2014 Women’s Match Racing World Champion, who is currently ranked third in World Sailing’s Women’s Match Racing Rankings. Teams participating in the past three WIM Series seasons and likely to attend include those from Denmark, France, Australia and the USA. Past WIM Series competitors from countries such as the Netherlands, Canada, Finland, Switzerland, Brazil, Singapore, Ireland and Great Britain may also fly into St. Thomas to sail.
“The WIM Series, as an international series, strives to spread its events around the globe. The CAMR provides us with our first event in the Caribbean and opens new doors. The rich history and incredible reputation of the CAMR makes the event a great fit for us. The U.S. Virgin Islands are an incredible place to sail and will provide an amazing backdrop for the final event of the 2016 WIM Series,” said Liz Baylis, WIM Series manager.
The CAMR is a World Sailing (WS)-provisional Grade One event. The format will feature a full round robin of all teams followed by knockout quarterfinals for the top 8, then knockout semi-finals, petit-finals and finals. The event will be sailed in IC 24, a modification of J/24.
The Virgin Islands Sailing Association (VISA) and St. Thomas Yacht Club (STYC) are the organizing authorities for the CAMR, namesake for the late Carlos Aguilar, who was an avid sailor and match racer. Sponsors for the regatta include the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism, Yacht Haven Grande, Bellows International and K3.
The Women’s International Match Racing Series (WIM Series) is the first and only professional sailing series for women, hosted by the Women’s International Match Racing Association and joined by the world’s leading women match racing sailors.
An overall prize purse of $50,000 will be distributed by the WIM Series in addition to the prize money at each of the events included in the 2016 WIM Series (date, event name, location, boat type):
June 27 – July 1, Helsinki Women’s Match, Helsinki, Finland, J/80.
August 8 – 13, Lysekil Women’s Match, Lysekil, Sweden, DS 37.
Sept. 20 – 25, Women’s Match Racing World Championship & Buddy Melges Challenge, Sheboygan, USA, Elliott 6m.
Oct. 25 – 29, Busan Cup Women’s International Match Race, Busan, South Korea, K30.
Dec. 1 – 4, Carlos Aguilar Match Race, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, IC 24.
The WIM Series is hosted by WIMRA. Official suppliers are Sailnet, 1080 Media, MILK, Sailing Education Association of Sheboygan, Adstream and Match Racing Results Service.
A number of high resolution images are available for download on www.wimseries.com/media/
More information about the Women’s International Match Racing Series:
WIM Series Press Officer Joakim Hermansson at media@wimseries.com or +46-70-604-25-04
WIM Series Manager Liz Baylis at Liz@wimseries.com or +1-415-691-6202
www.wimseries.com
