Bermuda's top young sailors will have home advantage when they take part in the 2002 North American Optimist Dinghy Championships, TheRoyal Gazette can reveal.

For the event is being staged on Island waters for the first time since 1998.

A press conference has been arranged for later today to officially announce the coup, but Les Crane, vice commodore of the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club was happy to confirm the facts ahead of time.

The regatta, featuring the best young talent from across the region, takes place between July 22 and 28 and Colonial Insurance have agreed to be the title sponsors.

"We held this event in 1998 and have been awarded the right to hold the event in 2002," said Crane. "We are quite excited about it. There has been quite a bit of growth in the Optimist fleet since we last held the event and the reputation and memories from the 1998 event are preceding us.

"It will be the major junior sailing event of next year's calendar."

Crane said initially Bermuda had to convince the event's authorities to give the Island a chance at organising the regatta.

"Prior to our having it in 1998, this event rotated between Canada, the United States and Mexico. We put in a strong pitch in 1997 to get the event and after due consideration they accepted the idea of a country aside from those three staging the event," he said.

"Our event was very well received and it has become a highlight of the North American circuit. We have nice water, a great climate plus we have got a very active and involved organising committee and the kids just love the venue."

Crane said he expected the local contingent to figure highly on the leaderboard.

"Jesse Kirkland was just fifth in the US national championships, he will be competing, Elijah Simmons just won his age group in the same regatta and he will also be competing," he said. "We are limited to 30 local competitors in the championship event but we will also have a Silver Fleet, which is a second regatta that will be running at the same time. Entries are open to admission so we would anticipate the entire Bermuda Optimist programme participating in that Silver event."

The championship event will be held on the Great Sound, with the silver event pencilled in for Granaway Deep, although that still has to be confirmed.