The Dubai International Marine Club (DIMC) will kick off its new season, 2023-2024, this Saturday with the first round of the Dubai Traditional Dhow Sailing Race (22ft) along the Jumeirah shore.

The organizing committee at DIMC has initiated preparations for the opening race in cooperation with governmental and national institutions. They have also announced the opening of registration via the club's official website, which will remain open until Friday (noon).

The organizing committee has established technical regulations for the two categories of the race such as the juniors who are under 16 years old and the youth who are under 21 years old.

Mohammed Al Marri, the Director of Sports Affairs at DIMC, welcomes the participants, the club's partners from the government and national institutions, to the new season 2023-2024, and wishes everyone success and fruitful cooperation during this season.

He revealed that the opening race will witness tough competition among the juniors and the youth as they vie for the title in the first race of the season. He said the club's organizing committee will notify the captains and boat owners of the registration procedure through SMS and announcements on the Social Media Channel, which will remain open until Friday noon, before announcing the final list of participants for the race the next day.

He reminded everyone to follow the rules and regulations stated in the race instructions, which will be implemented according to the race categories: Junior (under 16 years old) and Youth (under 21 years old).

1999

In 1999, the Dubai International Marine Club organized the first Dubai Traditional Dhow Sailing Race (22ft) on October 1st. The event featured 16 participating boats, with the crew of the boat 'Hayaf,' owned by sailor Rashid Mohammed Rashid Al Rumaithi, successfully crossed the finish line first and claimed the victory.

This race was established as a translation of the vision of the late Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, with the aim of creating an academy to train young and junior sailors, preparing them for a bigger races.

Over the years, the rules and conditions have evolved, culminating in the recent season's inclusion of two categories: the juniors under 16 years old and  the youth under 21 years old.