All Systems Go For The 13th Royal Langkawi International Regatta

LANGKAWI, (12 January 2015) – The organizers of the 13th Royal Langkawi International Regatta (RLIR) 2015 are all set to sound the starting signal for the 40 yachts that have registered to take part from 12 to 17 January 2015.

Since its inception in 2003, the RLIR has become a popular event and one of the most-anticipated regattas by the sailing community in the region and beyond. Its 13th edition this year sees 40 entries, of which 12 are from Malaysia, 7 from Great Britain, 5 from Australia, 4 from Thailand, 2 each from Singapore and Russia, and 1 each from Austria, Denmark, China, Hong Kong, Italy, New Zealand and Japan, as well as 1 with Great Britain and Australian registration.

Many of the RLIR regulars are in Langkawi this year including My Toy, Foxy Lady VI, Oi!, Jelita of Langkawi, Mata Hari, Eveline and Andaman Cabriolet Nina.

The RLIR 2015 Organising Chairperson Y.M Tunku Soraya Dakhlah binti Tunku Tan Sri Abdullah said, “I am thrilled to welcome back many familiar faces. Many of us first crossed paths at our first regatta in 2003 and have remained friends since. We are also pleased to welcome many new faces, joining us for the very first time. This is an indication that our regatta is gaining more recognition and attracting more competitive sailing teams from around the world to Langkawi.”

Making their debut at the RLIR 2015 are Alakaluff, Umineko, VG Offshore, Easy & Free, Island Fling and Invictus Reward.

Teams will compete for the Prime Minister’s Challenge Trophy – for Racing Class yachts; the Commodore’s Challenge Cup – for participants of club-registered cruisers; the LADA-IRC Challenge Trophy – for participants in the IRC 1 Class; the Langkawi Sports Trophy – for participants in the Sports Boat Class and the Malaysian Multihull Challenge Cup – for participants in the Multihull category.

The Racing class yachts are Peter Ahern’s Oi! and the three boats from the Royal Malaysian Navy – Zuhal, Zurah and Utarid.

Foxy Lady VI and Island Fling are the two to watch out for in the IRC-1 class while the IRC 2 boats include Pheonix, Mata Hari and Skybird.

The SMU team from Singapore, Siput, Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron and the Malaysia Sailing Association (MSA) team will be some of the Sport Boats to keep an eye on, while the Multihulls on course are Andaman Cabriolet Nina, Umineko, Galeforce and 2 Fast 4 You. The Club Class will be divided into Club Cruising, while Ocean Rovers and White Sails will be combined.

The Tunku Abdullah Sportsmanship Award, will be presented to the best team for its competitiveness, fair racing and comradeship, on water and land, in memory of the late Founding Chairman and the first Commodore of the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club (RLYC), Almarhum Tunku Tan Sri Abdullah Tuanku Abdul Rahman.

Apart from the competition, participants will be treated to a series of social events throughout the week of the regatta beginning with the Official Opening Ceremony dinner on 13 January and culminating with the Closing Ceremony party on 17 January.

RLIR 2015 is supported by the Ministry of Youth & Sport Malaysia, the Ministry of Culture & Tourism Malaysia and Tourism Malaysia, Kedah State Government and Langkawi Development Authority (LADA). Other partners include Permanis Sandilands, Neil Pryde, Caterpillar (Sime Darby Industrial) and Teraju Tri-Tech Sdn Bhd.Media Partners are SEA Yachting, SAIL-WORLD.com, YACHT Style, HOMME, IMAGE asia, TRAXXfm Radio and Spectrum OUTDOOR Marketing.

The Royal Langkawi International Regatta (RLIR) 2015 is organised by the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club (RLYC) and sanctioned by the ISAF and Malaysian Sailing Association (MSA), and supported by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Malaysia. The RLIR is part of the Asian Yachting Circuit.