Regatta sports activities attract big crowds |01 October 2013

Beau Vallon is always the place to be at this time of year and last weekend was no different as people from all over crowded the Regatta site to get a taste of the various activities on offer.

Among the many attractions were also a number of sports activities – on the courts, the beach and even in the sea.

As I was passing through to take a look at the various sports, there was some very good ambience which attracted the crowd.

Arissol wins cycling race

Dominic Arissol won the 2013 Regatta cycling race held on Saturday.

Before the race started, there was a small demonstration by the cyclists for the main sponsors of the event – Intelvision – where they went up to Bel Ombre and back to the Regatta site to begin the race.

Riders from six teams – Eco, Journey, St Francis, Espoir, Journey Espoir and Strong Riders – were present for the race and they had to make their way from Beau Vallon to town via Glacis and Anse Etoile and from Victoria they headed south to Takamaka via the east coast. Upon reaching Takamaka they headed up Anse Boileau and made their way back east through Montagne Posée, where they then went back to Beau Vallon through Glacis.

Dominic Arissol, who rides for Eco Riders, was the first to cross the finish line in a time of 2 hours 41 minutes 27 seconds (2h41:27), four seconds ahead of teammate Chris Germain who clocked a time of 2h41:31. Third place went to Journey’s cyclist Ahmad Arissol who finished in 2h41:38.

The best team were Eco Riders with a combined time of 8h10:47, while Journey had to settle for second place again with 8h43:42. St Francis were third with 8h47:32.

Water sports

On the sea, there were quite a few events unfolding, with the ironman/woman races, sailing, canoeing and mini-Mahé races all taking place.

Starting with the ironwoman race, a total of five teams showed up to compete.  There were three members per teams and they each did one of the three disciplines – swimming, running and canoeing.
The team of Alice Rigamonti, Maria Marzocchi and Felicity Passon finished first to take the ironwoman title and were second overall.
 
Their overall time was 14 minutes 03.21 seconds (14:03.21). In second place was the team of Leyla Rigamonti, Gaelle Dubignon and Zoe Barois with a time of 15:43.28 and third was the team consisting of Charlotte Passon, Valentina Rigamonti and Therese Soukoup with 17:11.33.

For the ironman race contest, only two teams showed up and it was the well-assembled team of long distance runner Keddy Moustache, canoeist Tony Lespoir and swimmer Dean Hoffman who came out in first place. Their time was 12:28.48 and they were followed by the team of Ned Azemia, Anil Bacco and Trevor Henriette in 16:46.01.

The Seychelles Canoe Association also hosted canoe races at the Regatta with the seven competitors competing in three races – 200m, 800m and a long distance.

Hugely experienced canoeist Tony Lespoir collected wins in all the three races to finish with three points.
 
Stephen Nicette finished in second place with seven points after two second places and one third position.

 Julio Payet was third on nine points after one second place, a third place and a fourth place finish in the last race.
 
Sailing was also on the cards as the Laser sailors were in action in three races.  In the Laser junior class, Alison Hoareau got two first places and one third place finish to win the category with five points. Elsie Gertrude was second with six points while Martin Servina was third with eight points.

For the more experienced seniors, top sailor Allan Julie did not have an easy time against his colleagues in a very highly competitive affair, but he managed to do just enough to finish in first place with six points.

Roy Govinden was second with seven points, while Meggy Gertrude was third with eight points.

Interestingly, each of the top three won a race on the day.

Team sports

On the beach, the beach football competition for men’s and women’s’ teams attracted a large crowd and coach Elsie Ernesta added to the ambiance with her live commentary.

Olympia won the final against the CJSOI team to finish as winners of the women’s competition. Rovers were in third place.

For the men, some of the teams who are involved in the league took the opportunity to keep their squads fit and two of them met in the final.

Real Maldive met One Stone in the final and it was the former who emerged as the winners. Galilee finished in third place.

Further down the beach, another crowd had formed, this time surrounding the beach volleyball tournament.
 
I managed to get there on time for the women’s final match between the team of Hilary Nourrice and Berlira Jacqueline and the other comprising Rona Dubignon and Matty Molta.
 
Both sets of players were giving a good display and despite it being a hot Sunday, they were doing their best to get the win. In the end it was the team of Nourrice and Jacqueline who were victorious on a 2-0 (21-15, 21-19) scoreline.

In the men’s final, it was the Bijoux brothers – Bernard and Guilly – who faced Guy Valentin and Danny Marie in the final. Bernard and Guilly managed to come out with the victory with a 2-0 (21-16, 21-16) score.

The following are some of the photos taken during the Regatta event.

S. N.