The dreamy town of Playa Blanca experienced a day full of emotion, tradition, and spectacle this Saturday morning with the dispute of the grand final of the South Latin Sail Cup 2024, "a test more than consolidated in the calendar and that has been celebrated with great success," said the Sports Councilor of Yaiza, Ángel Lago, in which the southern boat Tritón Clínica Veterinaria Bari with Kevin Cabrera at the helm was proclaimed champion. The second drawer of the podium was for the Pescamar Titerroy of Santiago González and Playa Blanca, skippered on this occasion by Joaquín Medina, occupied the third place.
The day started with a minute of silence in memory of Antonio Cabrera "Seiko", a historical figure of Latin sailing who passed away the day before, and with the
boats wearing a black armband in his honor.
The good weather accompanied this last day, being able to celebrate the three regattas planned by the organization and offering, especially the three boats at the head, a spectacle full of emotion, alternating positions on the podium and fighting until the end to win the coveted cup. A fight that the fans followed from the famous "stone of Playa Blanca" despite the fact that finally no departure could be made under sail, as initially expected.
Thus, in the first regatta it was Pescamar who entered in first position followed by Tritón and Playa Blanca, this being the podium of the Castillo del Águila Trophy; in the second regatta of the day, Tritón managed to take the lead and take the victory, with Pescamar Titerroy second and Playa Blanca third; and the last regatta of the day and of this fourth edition of the South Latin Sail Cup ended with a new victory for Kevin Cabrera at the command of Tritón Clínica Veterinaria Bari, followed on this occasion by Playa Blanca with Joaquín Medina at the helm and Pescamar Titerroy of Santiago González occupying the third drawer of the podium.
"In the first regatta there was a little less wind and Santiago was noticeably a bit faster. In the other two it went up a little and we started to feel a little more comfortable and faster in the boat," explained the skipper of Tritón, Kevin Cabrera. "There has been a great fight with the Pescamar Titerroy of Santiago González, whom we also congratulate because he has been pushing throughout the Cup, and with Playa Blanca, who has also pushed a lot and made it very difficult for us," Cabrera concluded. For his part, Santiago González pointed out that "Tritón is a fair winner, he made the start very well and it was a bit difficult... But we are quite satisfied with what we have done and it served as training for the League."
"Today we had a gentle breeze and very good, we were able to sail three regattas very quickly," noted the skipper of Playa Blanca, Joaquín Medina, who stressed that "we have to encourage everyone to come, that we also travel to Arrecife to sail and they should have come too."
The southern councilors Ángel Lago, Daniel Medina, Beatriz Vázquez and Silvia Santana, who followed the development of the tests in detail from a zodiac, were in charge, together with the Minister of Sports, Juan Monzón, of officiating the awards ceremony, held at the end of the regattas at the Playa Blanca pier, next to La Cofradía, where a fraternal lunch was later offered. In it, the Sports Councilor, Ángel Lago, thanked all the participants and especially the boats of the municipality "because without them it would have been impossible to carry out this event", the boats of Fuerteventura "for accompanying us in all the regattas they have been able to" and Santiago González "our shipwright who has manufactured most of the Lanzarote fleet", skipper of the only participating boat from Arrecife. "It is very exciting to see the elderly people again stationed on the stone of Playa Blanca reminiscing about those times when the fishermen arrived ashore after fishing. We have also seen this year many young people starting in this vernacular sport, so we know that there will be generational change although it is not necessary yet, since we have Santiago who with his age is still better than any young person and with good strategy, also demonstrating that experience is a plus in this sport," concluded the councilor.
For his part, the first deputy mayor Daniel Medina conveyed to all the congratulations, in his name and in that of the mayor, whom he excused for not being able to attend, "for this IV South Latin Sail Cup", wishing that there will be many more that we celebrate, as well as the boats that cross our seas.
The Minister of Sports, Juan Monzón, highlighted the importance of betting on the native sport and congratulated "those who have won but above all those who participate because they value this sport that we all have to protect because it is Canarian identity." In addition to the awards of the different trophies held throughout this IV South Latin Sail Cup, which started in mid-April, the Yaiza City Council wanted to take advantage of the presence of all the southern boats to also thank them for their participation in the Canary Islands Latin Sail Championship last November in La Graciosa, and present a plaque of recognition to the crew of Playa Blanca, winner of the regional competition, and especially to Virginia Morales, who also became the first woman to win this championship at the helm of a boat.
The mayor, Óscar Noda, congratulates "all the boats that have competed and that have demonstrated a great commitment to Latin sailing and to the South Cup of Lanzarote" and thanks the effort of all those who contribute to keep our native sports alive, which are our sign of identity"
