| AGIOS KOSMAS, ATHENS, GREECE-(21-8-2003) Gabriella Hatzidamianou is one of the youngest competitors taking part in the Athens 2003 Regatta, having just turned seventeen. But her youth doesn’t scare her, for (as she says) “I’m not afraid to compete with the big names in my class”. The Cypriot girl started sport at a very tender age, as an amateur volleyball player and track athlete. But it was Sailing that won her over two years ago, in 2001: “the wind, the waves, and the battle with the elements are what turn me on”.
The really impressive thing about Gabriella is that she’s the only woman Mistral sailor in Cyprus. This means that she has to train with the lads, since her category is one that doesn’t yet exist on the Great Island. This doesn’t bother her, because “That’s way I and my coach, Kostas Symeonidis, can test our powers”.
But Gabriella still has a lot of academic obligations ahead, as she’ll be moving up to the third class in high school in September. “I’m trying to combine the two and I think I can do it for the moment. It’s quite difficult, but I’m determined not to give up [sailing]”, she tells us. Her plans are to be in Greece as of next year. “I’m intending to come to Greece next year and study in the Gymnastic Academy. This will let me get on with my training in a country where you have the chance to do that,” she says. This will bring her closer to the woman Mistral sailor she most admires, Antonia Fry.
The Cypriot girl may, at present, only be in 21st place in the Athens 2003 Regatta women’s Mistral classification, but her intention is to fight as hard as she can for a better placement in the races to come. “I’ll try and surpass myself to get into a better position, but that’s pretty difficult since I shall be sailing against the big names in my field”.
If Gabriella Hatzidamianou is one of the newer names in this regatta, the Argentinean Julio Alberto Labandeira is the ‘grandfather’ of the Event, having been born on 12 August 1949 and having been many years in sailing, with no thoughts of giving up just yet. Remarkably, Labandeira, as skipper of the Star type craft, has a 27-year-old crew, Valentin Thompson. He is old enough to be Valentin’s father, but their teamwork on the sea lanes is harmony itself.
As Labandeira tells us: “I have the experience, Valentin has the enthusiasm. What unites us is that we both enjoy what we are doing. When we stop getting on well, our paths will separate”. The veteran Labandeira has great experience in working with younger sailors, as this isn’t the first time his crew has been much younger than him. “I know how to manage youngsters, as I enjoy working with them because of their enthusiasm. I’m really on the heavy side now. I’ve been working with Valentin for three years now, and I chose him because he’s in excellent physical condition and is still motivated for medals. We’re close to one another and concentrated on our goal. Also we haven’t come to Greece just for a holiday, but to do serious hard work. The 2004 Olympics are round the corner!”
Valentin Thompson, the “young ‘un”, spoke warmly of his guru. “He’s a very good sailor and I only get good tips from him”, said Thompson. “Every day is a lesson for me, and I’m very glad to be beside him”.
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