Team BDA have set the bar high and believe they can achieve a podium finish at the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup.

A team of 11 Bermudians, aged between 19 and 23, were chosen from a group of 150 athletes to represent the island at the highest level of youth sailing in the world.

Some were chosen because of their sailing skills and others because of their strength. They were all chosen because of their ability to learn and their team-oriented personalities.

Last night was the second community opportunity to meet Team BDA and watch a presentation at Liberty Theatre of three documentary films about their experiences and their goals, one produced by Beau Outteridge and the others by Glenn Jones. About 150 people came out to learn the team’s story.

The films capture the spirit of the team and the broad goals and the benefits to the Bermuda community.

They tell the story of diversity and opportunity, hard work and goals being reached as a result.

A question-and-answer session and comments period followed. The audience comments supported an effort to continue the successes of the team and programmes like Endeavour, which is the pathway for the future.

Three of the team members are black males, two are female ... none were chosen because of their race or gender but because of their personalities, strength, character, and for some their sailing skills.

All of the team members are shining examples of young Bermudian individuals who have put hard work first and who have sacrificed personally in time and effort to reach a common goal together.

In his job interview Richard Clarke, the team’s head coach, asked his future employers for a goal he would be expected to reach. He said: “They told me to teach them to be safe and responsible.”

He reached that goal early last summer and then set out to make the team potential podium finishers.

Clarke added: “We have given them the keys to a Formula One car and they hadn’t even taken out a go-kart. We now have a chance to reach the finals.”

Later in the evening, when moderator Jones asked the team members each to stand if they thought they could reach the podium they all stood, without hesitation. When asked if they could come first they all stood again.

In the comment period that followed the questions ranged from how Bermuda can help support the team, to what can been done to provide life for sailing after the America’s Cup.

The collective belief was that there needs to be a path for young sailors to take after they graduate from Opti sailing and other junior programmes.

Two members the audience spoke out strongly saying that sailing should be elevated to the level of a national sport. Only then will to path to international excellence in Olympic-class events be realised.

The America’s Cup is only a beginning for Bermuda.

The future is bright. Team BDA will leave a sailing legacy anybody can be a part of it if they set their sights high and work hard.

The Youth America’s Cup will take place on the Great Sound from June 12 to 21 and will feature 12 teams racing in the AC45F, the same foiling catamarans that were used in the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series.

The teams will be divided into two qualifying groups of six with the top four from each group advancing to the finals. The qualifiers will be held from June 12 to 16 and the finals June 20 to 21.

Team BDA are grouped in pool B with NZL Sailing team (New Zealand), Land Rover BAR Academy (Great Britain), Spanish Impulse team (Spain), Next Generation USA and Candidate Sailing team of Austria.

Pool A will comprise of Artemis Youth Racing (Sweden), Team France Jeune, Kaijin Team Japan, Youth Vikings Denmark, Team Tilt (Switzerland) and SVB Team Germany.

The aim of the Youth America’s Cup is to provide sailors ages 19 to 25 with a pathway to the America’s Cup.