UFIS Airport Solutions (UFIS-AS) is proud to announce that there were two gold medals for sailing athlete George Delikouras at the Italian Open Regatta in Malfalcone, held between the 21st and the 22nd of June 2008, including in the Paralympic 2.4mR class. With this result Delikouras also won the mini-series “Trofeo Alto Adriatico” which included three regattas held in Italy during June – Jesolo, Lignano and Malfalcone. The regattas are part of the preparation of Delikouras for the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. UFIS-AS is one of Delikouras’ sponsors.
The regatta in Malfalcone was the final round of “Trofeo alto Adriatico” and was organized by the local yacht club Societa Vela Oscar Cosulich (SVOC). Nine participations from two countries took part. Delikouras represented Greece and the Piraeus Sailing Club with a boat loaned for these races by SVOC. During the two days of the regatta all of the six scheduled races were held with good weather conditions. Delikouras scored first with eight penalty points in total, thus winning the gold medal for Malfalcone. Based on his results in all three regattas, he was also awarded the Trofeo “Paolo Violin” carrying the names of all the winners since 2002. Delikouras get to keep this trophy until next year’s regatta.
“This regatta reminded me of Athens Eurolymp Week 2008 that I won this year,” Delikouras said after the regatta. “The wind conditions were difficult with shifty light winds. I am pleased with the fact that all the scheduled races were completed because I had a very good practice. I dedicate this win to my coach Marios Benoukas who did not come with me this time as he had to stay back and work until after midnight to prepare my boat for the transport to Beijing. Finally I would also like to thank volunteer, colleague, and friend Stavros Verras who helped me the most during this expedition taking no account of fatigue and inconvenience. I have two regattas left in my preparation schedule, and I need the good results because the competition in Beijing will be ‘ruthless’.”
Delikouras participated in the regatta in the framework of his preparation for the Beijing 2008 Paralympics, which will be held between the 6th and 17th of September, where he will be representing Greece in the single-handed keel boat class, the 2.4mR. UFIS-AS announced earlier this year its sponsorship of Delikouras for the 2008 Paralympics, joining Athens International Airport, Media Communications and Aegean Airlines in sponsoring Delikouras’ preparation. The Paralympics – Olympic-style games for athletes with a disability – is an elite sporting event for athletes from six different disability groups.
“We are very proud of the success of Mr Delikouras, and we congratulate him on his three trophies,” said Anders Sagadin, UFIS-AS’s president and CEO. “This is a great achievement, and we hope the success stories will continue at the next regatta. We gladly support all of his preparation for the Beijing 2008 Paralympics.”