Pasha Hawaii Renews Sponsorship of the Pacific Rim Championships at Kaneohe Bay Yacht Club

Sunday, April 24, 2022

Sponsorship includes supporting free junior sailing clinic for Hawaii youth led by National and World Champions.

Pasha Hawaii has renewed its title sponsorship of the tenth bi-annual Pasha Hawaii Pacific Rim International 14 Skiff Racing Championships at Kaneohe Yacht Club, April 23-26, 2022. 

The four-day event will feature former World and National Champions from around the globe, including England, France, Canada, Australia, and the mainland. In addition to providing a platform for competitive racing, the Pasha Hawaii Pacific Rim International 14 Skiff Racing Championships also dedicates a day when the best sailors in the world work one-on-one with Hawaii’s top youth sailors.

The Pasha Hawaii Junior Sailing Clinic will be held at Kaneohe Yacht Club on April 24th at 9 am.  This free day-long clinic includes on-shore instruction from National Champions, as well as the top ten World Champion performers. 

Participating youth will have the opportunity to learn from the best, utilizing the premiere high performance racing sailboat -- the International 14-foot Skiff, considered the oldest and largest class in the world with active fleets in Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America.

Pasha Hawaii has served as a title sponsor of both the international competition and junior sailing clinic since 2016. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 event and clinic were cancelled.

“Pasha Hawaii considers it an honor to support youth development in Hawaii, and we are especially grateful that organizers are able to re-start this important program again this year,” said Pasha Hawaii President and CEO George Pasha, IV. “This free clinic serves as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many of Hawaii’s most talented sailors, who will receive excellent personalized training from some of the best in the world. Events like this helps prepare our youth for the challenges of adulthood by providing them with experiences to build their confidence and real-life skills.”

This year, members of the Kaneohe Yacht Club Junior Sailing Program will also present its new sustainability projects to the international competitors. Sea level rise measurements, clean water projects, and water catchment initiatives highlight the current activities which are supported by Pasha Hawaii through their generous sponsorship of this event. Five Star Transportation has joined the team this year in support of junior sailing and the environmental projects. 

Long-time Kaneohe Yacht Club Sailing Master Jesse Andrews has followed graduates from this youth sailing program around the world as they have sharpened their skills. Examples include Ian Andrews who currently serves as an international sailing coach, and JP Lattanzi who has been selected to the SailGP program and is competing at the highest international levels, just to name a few. Lattanzi was recently quoted as saying, “The training and encouragement I received in Hawaii has been invaluable to my international successes.”