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The 2005 SAR Princess Sofia Trophy, coordinated by the Federación Balear de Vela, Real Federación Española de Vela and the organizing Clubs (Club Náutico Arenal, Club Marítimo San Antonio de la Playa, Real Club Náutico de Palma and Escuela de Vela Calanova), continues until Friday 25 March and is being used as a selection event for the Spanish pre-Olympic team for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Yesterday and today has seen the registration and stamping of equipment with the first race of the event tomorrow at 1055 hours (local Spanish time).

All competitors will register at the race offices of each Club and they will also stamp their equipment to begin racing on Monday in the six different racing areas in which the 13 participating classes are distributed.

Each racing area will be assisted by around ten rescue boats, as well as Race Committee starting and finish vessels, mark layers and Juries, among others.

The results of each race, as well as the overall results, will be available in real time on internet. Minutes after the last boat has crossed the finishing line, the finishing order will be posted on the regatta official website www.trofeoprincesasofia.org.

The development of the races can also be followed through the website, where the organizers of the Princess Sofia Trophy will provide updated information on the weather conditions, the starts, postponements and any other important details of the racing.

Over 560 boats and approximately 856 competitors from 34 nations are competing in the Bay of Palma, with the participation of Olympic medallists, World and European Champions. The regatta will see the debut of the new Olympic women discipline, the Laser Radial, and we will enjoy the spectacular performance of the 49er fleet.

Among the renown sailors present, we will see Spanish Finn class sailor Rafa TRUJILLO (Athens silver medallist and current leader of the ISAF World Sailing Ranking List), British sailor Paul GOODISON (fourth in Athens 2004), British team Chris DRAPER and Simon HISCOCKS (bronze in 49er class in Athens), Spanish sailors Natalia VIA-DUFRESNE and Laia TUTZÓ (VIA-DUFRESNE was silver medallist in 470 Women in Athens with crew Sandra AZÓN), Norwegian sailor Siren SUNDBY (Europe class gold medallist in Athens and competing in the 470 Women in this edition, the equipment she aims to compete in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in) and Swedish sailors Johan MOLUND and Patrick JOHANSSON (fourth in Athens in 470 Men).

Besides Spanish sailors TRUJILLO and VIA-DUFRESNE, other sailors that will also fight for the leading places will be Mallorcan sailors Marc PATIÑO and Juan OMAR in the 470 Men (winners of the recent Barcelona Olympic Sailing Week), Alberto PADRÓN and Javier DE LA PLAZA in the 49er (recent National class championship winners), Fernando ECHAVARRI and Antón PAZ in the Tornado (eighth in Athens and currently placed in fifth place in the ISAF World Sailing Ranking list), Blanca MANCHÓN in the Mistral Women (eighth in Athens), Iván PASTOR in the Mistral Men (twelfth in Athens), and team Mónica AZÓN, Graciela PISONERO and Sandra AZÓN in the Yngling (Olympic sailors in Athens).