World Top Athletes Compete at the North Bund

By Geng Xiaoyan

The 2017 Shanghai Cup Nacra SYC Race and Nacra Asian Championship, which was the historic return to the 1st international yachting event (“Shanghai Cup”) held in 1873 in the China’s modern history, kicked off on October 28 at the North Bund. A total of 24 top-level players worldwide of 12 teams from 10 countries took part in the fierce competition along the about 1.5-kilometer-long riverway from Gongping Road Wharf to Yangtze River Wharf on the Huangpu River.

Wu Xielin, Deputy Secretary General of Shanghai Municipal Government, declared the opening of the championship, and Xu Bin, Director of the Shanghai Administration of Sports, delivered a speech. Attending the opening ceremony were Zhang Xiaodong, Chairman of Chinese Yacht Association, Marcus Spillane, Chairman of International Sailing Federation at the Nacra 17 and others. Zhang Lei, deputy governor of Hongkou District, presided over the launch ceremony.

Sailing, as one of the three major elements of Shanghai, has always been the symbol of the city’s vitality and vigor. The race displayed again the grand view of sailboats through Huangpu River 100 years ago. The latest hi-tech Nacra 17 hydrofoil boat, which was selected for the 2020 Olympic Games, was applied noticeably. The most eye-attracting point to the audience and the domestic and foreign media was that the world-top players sailed with the fast-speed sailboats, and even flew on the Huangpu River thanks to the hydrofoil technology.