Final Days Before Snipe Junior World Championship

San Diego, CA (August 18, 2009) - While most visitors in San Diego are concluding their vacations during these final days of summer, the ocean course off San Diego Bay will find 21 elite teams competing in the International Snipe Class Junior World Championship, hosted by San Diego Yacht Club.

Representing 11 countries, sailors under 22 years of age will be arriving this week to begin their training, with a practice race scheduled for this Sunday and the 11-race series planned for Monday, August 24th through Friday, August 28th.

Among the leading contenders for this biennial event is defending champions Mario Tinoco and Matheus Gonçalves from Brazil. Tinoco first won the Junior Worlds as crew in 2005, and if he and Gonçalves repeat in San Diego, Tinoco would become the first 3-time champion in class history.

Standing in the way of Tinoco is a slew of U.S. National Champions that include current winner Raul Rios and Antonio Sifre (PUR), 2008 winner Nick Voss and Enrique Quintero (Miami, FL), and 2007 winner Tyler Sinks and Shone Bowman (San Diego, CA). It was Sinks and Voss that finished third and fourth, respectively, at the 2007 Worlds, and have been training locally to improve on that performance.

Measurement and registration occur this weekend, with Opening Ceremonies scheduled for Sunday, August 23rd at 1800. - http://www.snipeworlds2009.com/index.htm