Boat EyeShenzhen sets sail in Bao'an

A sailboat named after Shenzhen’s multilingual portal EyeShenzhen. Liu Xudong

Early yesterday morning, crew members of a sailboat named after Shenzhen’s multilingual portal EyeShenzhen began their training for the first World Bay Area Regatta in the Qianhai Bay waters in Bao’an District.

The EyeShenzhen crew are led by French skipper Christian Fardel, a 68-year-old seasoned sailor and cultural scholar based in Hangzhou, capital of East China’s Zhejiang Province, who once crossed the Atlantic in a 10-meter-long sloop.

Teams compete for title of the 2023 World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) Shenzhen · Bao'an Final yesterday. Photos by Liu Xudong

Fardel has teamed up with three Shenzhen Global Communication Ambassadors and two local residents to compete with great rivals from other bay areas worldwide like San Francisco, Tokyo, New York, and Sydney.

Fardel’s crew are not professionals, with some new to sailing. He had to provide hands-on training.

“It seems that many of my crew members have never sailed before, and some do not know the basics of sailing. So, this will be interesting because it will challenge my ability to teach them how to sail a boat and win a race in under three hours. We have an international team with members from China, South Korea, Russia, Italy, the U.K. and France. We have a team with very limited knowledge and experience, but we still aim to finish first, of course,” Fardel shared with Shenzhen Daily.

“We are going to participate in the first World Bay Area Regatta, which is going to bring together people from beautiful bay areas around the world to compete in a race. I’m participating in a race where I do not know the level of my competitors,” he added.

Some members of the EyeShenzhen crew attend a meeting yesterday.

One of the crew members, Matteo Convertino, is an associate professor at Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School and a Shenzhen Global Communication Ambassador. He mentioned that sailing is one of his favorite pastimes as he grew up in Venice, Italy.

“I used to sail every single day in the summer, at least. I had my little sailboat, but I haven’t practiced for a long time. So, I also wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to regain my skills and connect with some local people,” he explained to Shenzhen Daily when asked why he signed up for the race.

“What we need to do is participate and avoid falling into the water because the boat can flip. Training with other people is very important. By participating, we can show that different people can come together very quickly and do things. It’s not important to win because all the other teams are extremely strong,” Convertino said.

A good sailor needs to adapt to all kinds of weather at sea and overcome some unpredictable emergencies.

Another crew member, Shin Moon-sub from South Korea, is a student from Shenzhen University and also a Global Communication Ambassador. He was running a fever while training, but still managed to complete it.

“I promised them I would come to the training, so I decided to train today,” Shin said.

“Sailing is a very exciting sport that requires a lot of cooperation. I also realize that the skipper is a really important role. The skipper is the most experienced person who will influence the team’s performance,” Shin said after the training.

The five-day regatta is taking place alongside the 2023 World Match Racing Tour in Bao’an District from Dec.12 to 17. This unique regatta marks the first time that exceptional sailors from various bay areas have come together to compete and engage in exchanges with one another.