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Taiwan buoyed by sailing

Taiwan gets another new annual regatta this weekend as the government continues to push sailing. The 2002 East Coast Tourism Cup Invitational (東海岸觀光盃國際帆船邀請賽) has drawn around 300 mostly domestic competitors in six classes of windsurfers and three classes of dinghies. It takes place leeward of Hualien harbor from Thursday to Sunday.

When we go to Europe or Australia, we see lots of sailboats," said Lin Teh-fu (林德福), Chairman of the National Council of Physical Fitness and Sports, at a press conference yesterday.

"Taiwan is an island country. People should be able to enjoy ocean sports," he continued, emphasizing sailing in addition to scuba diving and swimming.

Recreational sailing has only really appeared in Taiwan's waters following the lifting of martial law in 1987 and the relaxation of tight security on all national borders. Its development has also been complicated by the lack of a regulatory framework, as existing rules were designed for cargo shipping and fishing.

But this year the government has changed its attitude if not the rules and is promoting sailing.

Hualien's East Coast Tourism Cup to be held this weekend is the second debut event this month with major government sponsorship behind it.

The first was the Taiwan 49er Grand Prix, an Olympic-class event featuring some of the world's best dinghy racers, almost all of whom were foreign.

Other sailing events this year include the third annual Adecco Penghu Pro-Am, which will draw some of the world's top windsurfers to the roaring winds of the Taiwan Strait in late November, a national regatta for dinghies and windsurfers that was held near Lungtung in northern Taiwan in July and a yacht race from Japan to Hualien in May.

Many foreign nationals who've sailed in Taiwan think the island is poised to enter the world sailing scene.

"If you look at Penghu, it's really perfect. It's only a matter of getting the right equipment and facilities and developing the sport. With the wind and water conditions what they are, it can only grow as a sport," said Julian Jessom of Destination Marketing, the British sports marketing group that ran the recent 49er Grand Prix.

Following the Grand Prix, Destination Marketing donated two of the US$20,000 49ers -- the nickname given to the 4.9m dinghies used in Olympic racing -- to help Taiwan develop its own Olympic sailing program and as a goodwill gesture towards races to be held in future years.

With this weekend's East Coast Tourism Cup, the goal is simply to develop domestic interest in the sport.

"We hope that we can hold the event for several years, and then get [International Sailing Federation] certification. Then the competition can draw more foreign entrants," said organizer Lai Yung-hsun (賴永勳).

Conditions for the Hualien race should be exciting.
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