40th World Military Sailing Championship
14 to 21 Oct 06
"FRIENDSHIP THROUGH SPORT"
Introduction
For a Naval Sailor, Sailing remains an intriguing sport. The skill of a sailor in harnessing the forces of nature is as important as his physical strength and stamina. Indian Navy has always been at the forefront in ensuring excellence in sports among its personnel. Amongst the latest of such endeavours the Western Naval Command of the Indian Navy displayed its passion for sailing by hosting the 40th World Military Sailing Championship under the aegis of Council of the International Military Sports (CISM) for the first time in India. Under the patronage of VAdm SS Byce, PVSM, AVSM, NM Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command and Chairman of the Organising Committee for WMSC-06, sailors from fifteen nations participated in the Enterprise - Class races which was held at the Indian Naval Watermanship Training Centre, Colaba from 14-21 Oct 06. Overall 14 foreign teams and one team from India fielded a total of 70 participants to try out their sailing skills in the waters of the Arabian Sea off Mumbai.
Brief History CISM.
The French port of Brest hosted the first ever World Military Sailing event in the year 1949. The first formal World Military Sailing Championship was held in 2001. The CISM or the Conseil International du Sport Militaire (Council of International Military Sports) is the governing body for this and other sporting events conducted between the military forces of 127 member nations. Five founding nations - Belgium, Denmark, France, Luxembourg and The Netherlands - created CISM at a meeting in Nice on completion of a fencing event on 18 February 1948. Ever since CISM never had to look back as its universality became increasingly real, ultimately leading to recognition by international institutions like the IOC.
Accommodation and Recreation.
The participants and delegates of the visiting Foreign Military Services were accommodated at WNC (O) Mess. RAdm DK Dewan, Flag Officer Commanding Maharashtra Naval Area and Vice Chairman of the Organising Committee and various sub-committees under him worked assiduously to provide excellent facilities for accommodation / leisure and sports commensurate with the mega event. The event was a unique opportunity for our officers and men to interact with their peers to foster cooperation and mutual understanding in keeping with the CISM Motto of 'Friend ship Through Sports'. At the same time participants were given enough time to enjoy glimpses of the area around Colaba and go on shopping sprees. A tour of the city of Mumbai was also organised in order to introduce the guests to the unique flavours of "Amchi Mumbai".
Race Participation.
70 participants from the Military Services of 15 nations including the gold medal winning team from India competed in the Championship. A total of twelve races were planned in a 'Round Robin' format over a period of four days commencing 16 Oct. Every effort was put in to ensure a fair and competitive event. Only non - Olympic class boats which do not have any major crew considerations were used for the races as per CISM rules. The jury comprised judges of international and national stature. A team of technical experts headed by President Technical Committee from CISM monitored the technical aspects of the race while, Protest Committee was formed to resolve issues of protests and appeals of which there were not many. An official CISM Representative monitored the overall conduct of the event.
Conduct.
The event began with a Preliminary Conference, draw of the Enterprise Class boats and training cum familiarisation with the boats on 15 Oct 06 followed by an opening ceremony in the evening in which, Vice Admiral Sangram Singh Byce, Flag Officer Commanding-in- Chief, Western Naval Command, officially declared the 40th World Military Sailing Championship (WMSC) open. Rear Admiral DK Dewan, Flag Officer Commanding, Maharashtra Naval Area, Vice Chairman Organizing Committee welcomed all participants. He expressed his sincere thanks to CISM for having selected India for hosting the event outside Europe for the first time. Cmde Kamel Bouhaouala, Chief Representative of CISM from Tunisia then hoisted the CISM Flag in tune with the CISM Hymn. Soon thereafter, NK Yadav MCPOI the renowned Indian sailor, who eventually won the gold medal, read out the oath.
Day One - 16 Oct
The morning was reserved for training. Players tried their skills on boats before getting on to the main race. India dominated the proceedings on the first day with Naresh Yadav MCPO I, C Murugan L/S winning of all the three races. Sri Lanka finished at second while Italy had to settle for the third place.
Day Two - 17 Oct.
India maintained their lead finishing second, first and first respectively in the three races held on day two. Ukraine almost pulled off a surprise by taking the lead in the first race of the day. They lost out at the final round due to a mistake, which allowed Poland and India to move into first and second positions. Poland maintained their lead on the final leg to finish three boat lengths ahead of India. Ukraine had to settle for third, their best performance so far in the championships. The second and third race of the day saw India picking up another win but Finland did well to improve their position in the overall standings by finishing second. Poland managed to hold off stiff competition from Norway to finish third.
Day Three - 18 Oct.
India maintained a steady lead and seemed well underway to win the title with two wins in three races on day three.
Day Four - 19 Oct.
The Indian team won their first ever title at the 40th World Military Sailing Championship with a convincing lead over second placed Russia and third placed Sri Lanka. Cdr. Ditmar Anderson, who is the President of the Technical Committee for the championships, said, "We are extremely happy with the way the championships were organized. All the competitors played by the rules and the most important thing of all, the best team won. I don't think that anyone could tell that India is holding the event for the first time because of the amount of professionalism and the organized nature in which it was conducted". India's neighbours Sri Lanka seemed a little disappointed, as the races had to be cancelled on the fourth day due to poor wind. Krishan Janaka PO, who was one of the members of the Sri Lankan team, said, "We had a real opportunity to catch up with Russia who finished a point ahead of us. It's a little unfortunate but we are satisfied with our performance. The experience itself is fantastic so the next time we compete we will definitely be a stronger team."
Results.
Gold - India
Silver - Russia
Bronze - Sri Lanka
Closing Ceremony.
The Closing Ceremony commenced with the arrival of the Chief Guest VAdm SS Byce, PVSM, AVSM, NM, and Chairman Organising Committee. During his speech the Commander-in-Chief mentioned his appreciation for successful conduct of the championship and expected the same to be repeated next year. The CISM official rep Cmde Kamel Bouhaouala too appreciated the smooth conduct of event and thanked the organisers for their hospitality and also expressed the hope that the same would be replicated for the fourth Military World Games to be held from 14-21 October 2007, wherein Western Naval Command, Mumbai has the honourable task of conducting two mega events of Sailing and Triathlon.
With the speech over, the chief guest gave away the medals to the and wining team from India and the Fair Play trophy to Norway. The CISM flag was then hauled down by CISM Rep Cmde Bouhaouala and handed over to the C-in-C. Thereafter, the C-in-C and Chairman Organising Committee officially declared the WMSC - 06 closed. A cultural programme followed soon and a gala dinner thereafter drew the curtains on the 40th World Military Sailing Championships. |