Princess Anne gives royal seal of approval to Greig City Academy sailing crew
Jon Holt (far left), the teacher responsible for the project collected the award alongside Greig City Academy pupils Camilo Orobio, Shabazz Patterson and Montel Fagan-Jordan. Photo by Greig City Academy - Credit: Archant
Greig City Academy students were among dedicated sailors from across the UK who had their endeavours recognised by HRH Princess Anne at the annual Royal Yachting Awards (RYA) ceremony.
The Haringey academy is the first London state school to have its own sailing club and was named as the winner of the ‘endeavour for project scaramouche’.
The project saw a group of 12 students learn to sail, give more than 50 talks and raise enough funding to purchase and restore a 45ft yacht Scaramouche. So far 120 young people have had the opportunity to sail on Scaramouche and in August eight youngsters completed the RORC Rolex Fastnet Race.
Three days later they rounded Fastnet rock, hoisted the spinnaker and headed for the finish line in Plymouth. Arriving in the early hours of Friday, August 11, Project Scaramouche became the first state school to complete the race.
Jon Holt, the teacher responsible for the project collected the award alongside pupils Montel Fagan-Jordan, Shabazz Patterson and Camilo Orobio.
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“It’s a huge honour to be nominated for the award, not just to receive the award but also to be in the company of the guests here,” he said.
The original group of a dozen students began dinghy sailing in 2014, achieved RYA dinghy qualifications, and progressed to sail their 22ft MacGregor yacht in Poole Harbour.
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In 2015 they entered their first race, the ASTO Small Ships Race, and won.
The following year’s sailing season saw Scaramouche and its crew compete in four regattas, including the JP Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race. The RORC Cowes to St Malo race was Scaramouche’s first offshore race and the crew rose to the occasion, finishing mid-way through the fleet.
The academy believes that sailing contributes to personal growth, promotes social awareness and develops skills for life. The project aims to broaden horizons, promote a can-do attitude and foster a lifelong love of exploration and adventure through sailing.
Everyone involved in Project Scaramouche and the successful completion of the RORC Rolex Fastnet Race 2017 are truly deserving of the RYA Award for Endeavour.
