The image of sailing as a sport for old men in blue blazers has been a hard one to shake off. However, the London inner-city school, with 75% of the children officially classed as underprivileged, has done just that. The Greig City Academy shot to fame in 2017 as the first Comprehensive State School team to compete and finish the Rolex Fastnet Race, and their achievements have not been a one-hit wonder. Greig City Academy's Project Scaramouche has excelled in a number of sailing events and one of their number, 17-year old Montel Fagan-Jordan was awarded the 2017 Young Sailor of the Year trophy by the Yachting Journalists' Association (YJA), which has been previously won by Olympic Gold medallists Ben Ainslie and Shirley Robertson.
"It is a tremendous honour to be invited to take part in Antigua Sailing Week. Many of our students and their families have strong links with the Caribbean," commented Letford. "Our local community will take great pride in the fact that we are representing North London at such a prestigious international regatta. This represents a major step forward for the Greig City Academy sailing project and is a definite highlight of our 2018 season. The Y2K programme has many parallels with what we do here at GCA Sailing. In return, we have invited participants from the Y2K programme the opportunity to compete at Lendy Cowes Week aboard Scaramouche, our 45ft Frers racing yacht."