Jeddah Yacht Club & Marina partners with RS Sailing to open training academy

Jeddah Yacht Club & Marina in Saudi Arabia has opened The JYC Academy, a state-of-the-art training centre for sailing and powerboat training.

Jeddah Yacht Club & Marina has partnered with sailing dinghy manufacturer RS Sailing to provide an extensive range of boats and has secured RYA accreditation for the new facility.

“We have invested in these amazing facilities at The JYC Academy because we are committed to the growth of watersports throughout Saudi Arabia,” says Mohideen Nazer, senior vice president at Sela, the company behind Jeddah Yacht Club & Marina.

“We have built a world-class training centre in Jeddah that will inspire people new to the sport to come and try it and will provide elite sailors with the best opportunity to develop their competitive skills. We want as many people as possible to enjoy watersports — young and old, newcomers and elite alike — and we have built a centre that is inspirational.”

The opening of The JYC Academy comes ahead of the America’s Cup Preliminary Regatta being hosted at Jeddah Yacht Club & Marina in late November. The world’s best sailors and ‘flying’ AC40 boats will do battle on the Red Sea for the first time in the history of the world’s oldest sporting trophy, which started in 1851.

“The eyes of the sailing world will be on Saudi Arabia from 29 November to 2 December,” says Adrian Peet, VP of marine development at Sela. “Launching The JYC Academy now, partnering with RS Boats and gaining RYA accreditation will allow us to capitalise on the increased interest and excitement. It will allow us to get more people out on the water and allow us to provide world-class training facilities all year round.”

He adds: “We are proud to have secured accreditation from the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) and to have the largest range of accredited courses in the Kingdom, from RYA Level One up to Yacht Master Theory. The RYA is the gold standard, so our students will benefit from cutting-edge training methods and internationally recognised certification pathways.”

The RS Sailing fleet at The JYC Academy includes RS Zests for those new to the sport, RS Neos and Quests for beginner training, RS Fevas for ambitious youths and kite work, RS Cat 16, and the RS500 to give advanced sailors the thrill of trapezing.

“The team behind The JYC Academy have the same ethos and same objectives that we have at RS Sailing,” says Dan Jaspers, international business developer at RS Sailing. “They are focusing on the development of the sport and on growing the next generation of sailors in Saudi Arabia. Bringing sailing back to a nation that once relied on water for life and trade, and seeing it come full circle, is incredibly exciting for us.”

Jeddah Yacht Club & Marina and The JYC Academy are run by a team of experienced marine professionals led by general manager Oliver Rees, marina director Colin Ralph, and JYC Academy manager Louise Ralph.

Sela says this year, the academy has already seen over 1,400 adults and children participate in a variety of watersports, from 2-hour taster sessions to week-long sailing camps.