Sails up for Royal-Thomian regatta

From left: Yusef Hazari (Vice Captain, Royal College); Omar Hazari (Captain, Royal College), McKyle Karunaratne (Captain,  S. Thomas’ College) and Nithik Senaratne (Vice Captain,  S. Thomas’ College)

The 10th edition of the Royal-Thomian sailing regatta will unfold on Friday and Saturday on the Bolgoda Lake for the Ranil Dias Memorial Trophy.

Since its inception in 2014, the event has become a highlight of the schools’ sporting calendar sponsored for the sixth consecutive year by North Technology Group.

S. Thomas’ College currently leads the tally with six wins to Royal College’s three, although the Royalists have held the trophy for the past two years. This year’s contest is expected to be wide open, with both schools fielding evenly matched crews in the ILCA 6 and Optimist classes.

Royal skipper Omar Hazari and his vice-captain brother Yusef Hazari, both national champions, will spearhead the defending champions while the Thomians will be led by multi-sport athlete McKyle Karunaratne, supported by vice-captain Nithik Senaratne.

“This year the chances are pretty equal. It’s going to be fierce and interesting,” said Omar Hazari. His counterpart Karunaratne agreed. “Whatever the outcome, may the best team win,” he said.

Despite the intensity on water, both schools pride themselves on a strong sailing fraternity. “We don’t even look at ourselves as two teams until the regatta approaches — we’re just one big family,” said Yusef Hazari.