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Welcome to Pattaya!
Royal Varuna Yacht Club, Thailand's premier international Sailing Club
Nov 23 - 29
Byte CII 2009 Asian Championships
and
Asian Qualifier for the 2010 Youth Olympic Games
Event
News:
Final Day. Keerati wins convincingly, Thailand, Malaysia and China qualify for Youth Olympics
November 29, 2009
The Byte Class International Association would like to express its sincere thanks to the Officers,
Volunteers, Organizers and Race Committee of the Royal Varuna Yacht Club, The Yacht Yacing
Association of Thailand, the Coaches and supporters of the competing teams, the regatta Jury
and Xtreme Sailing Products, the Byte manufacturer who supplied the charter boats for the
Championship. Nothing would have been possible without all of them.
It was a spectacular Championship and one that has set the highest standard possible for the
remaining Continental Qualifiers.
The Winner!
 Thailand's Keerati Bualong, the 2007 Byte CII World Champion, (also sailed at the Royal Varuna Yacht Club in
Pattaya), now adds the 2009 Asian Byte CII Championship to his growing list of accomplishments with a thoroughly
convincing win. At 17, he is too old to compete in the 2010 Youth Olympic Games but his presence in the regatta
certainly set the standard. Details below.
 The 50 sailors from Thailand, Singapore, India, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Japan and China taking
part in the CII Asian Championship which was also the Asian Qualifier for the first Youth Olympic Games being
sailed in Singapore in August 2010. See Qualifiers in story below.
Youth Olympic Games Qualifiers
With Singapore already seeded into the Games as the host country, three spots were open to the
top three different countries in both the boy's and girl's divisions of the Championship providing
that the competitor would not have turned 17 in 2010. The same three countries claimed both the
boy's and the girl's places, shown below in their order of finish. Their actual finishes can be found
in the results. All competitors in the result listings with a red star opposite their name were of an
age to be able to qualify their country for the Games.
Boys
Thailand Sailed by Supakorn Pongwichean
Malaysia Sailed by Muhamad Amirul Shafiq Bin MD Jais
China Sailed by Wang Zili
Girls
China Sailed by Gu Min
Malaysia Sailed by Khairunneeta Binti Mohd Afendy
Thailand Sailed by Jittiwa Thanawitwilat
Final Day of racing
The final day of racing saw strong winds averaging about 15 knots. However these windy
conditions were ideal for 2007 Byte CII World Champion, Keerati Bualong who won the last 3
races, clinching the Byte CII Asian Championships with style
Race 14
Singapore sailors found the strong wind challenging and Keerati made full use of his homeground
advantage. He led all the way in Race 14 and never looked back. Nathan Tang SIN finished in
second with teammate Chai Xun finishing 3rd
Race 15
The strong winds continued and, once again, Keerati dominated the race followed by Darren Choy
SIN, 2009 Byte CII World Champion, and Natthawut Peanyaem THA in third.
Final race
With 15 races sailed, Keerati did not need to sail the last but, bucking the trend we see all too
often, the young sportsman sailed the race all out and put his final stamp on the championship with
his third win of the day. The new 2009 Byte CII Asian Champion won 8 of the 16 races, with his
worst finish a 7th, showing the immense potential of this 17 year old. Even though he is over the
age limit for the Youth Olympics in Singapore in 2010, there is a great sailing future in the cards
for this young man.
In the girl's division, only 9 points separated Airiel Ruth Ho of Singapore and Thailand's Kamolwan
Chanyim going into the last race but the Singapore sailor finished 10th to Kamolwan's 16 and won
the Girl's division of the Championship. Singapore's Natasha Michiko Yokoyama finished in 3rd
place overall.
2009 Asian Championship Results
Boys overall
1. Keerati Bualong THA
2. Darreb Choy SIN
3. Nathan Tang SIN
4. Terence Choo Jim Jie SIN
5. Natthawut Peanyaem THA
9. Chai Xun SIN
Darren Choy, 2nd overall in the regatta but top male eligible for the YOG © SingaporeSailing
Girls overall
1. Airiel Ruth Ho SIN
2. Kamolwan Chanyim THA
3. Natasha Michiko Yokoyama SIN
Airiel Ruth Ho SIN, 2009 CII Asian Women’s Champion ©SingaporeSailing
and also top female eligible for the YOG
The Champions!
Left to right back: Nathan Tang SIN, Darren Choy SIN, Terrence Choo SIN, Keerati Bualong THA, Chai Xun SIN,
Natthawut Peanyaem THA. Front: Kamolwan Chanyim THA, Ho Ruth Airiel SIN, Natasha Michiko Yokoyama SIN
These were the top six male and top three female finishers in the Championship. Of the top six male finishers,
two of them - Keerati Bualong (1st) and Natthawut Peanyaem (5th), both of Thailand, were too old to qualify for
the Games. Of the top three female finishers, Kamolwan Chanyim of Thailand (2nd female and 16th overall) was
also overage. In both cases, their compatriots successfully qualified their country.
The Unsung Heroes!
The coaches and team leaders of the participating countries - the ones who make it all happen!
Day 4. Thailand tops the standings going into the final day of the Asian YOG Qualifiers
November 28, 2009
Go to the Royal Varuna YC for results
Strong winds averaging 15 knots with gusts of up to 20 knots were the order of the day and Thailand showed its home ground advantage by taking 2 out of the 3 races held today.Race 11
Thailand local hero, Keerati Bualong, sailed a perfect race to clinch the first position. Darren Choy SIN, finished 2nd followed by Terence Choo SIN. Overnight joint leader, Nathan Tang SIN, was disqualified under the Black Flag for being across the start line too early.
Race 12
Winds strengthened for this race and Keerati proved that he is the man to beat in the regatta. He sailed perfectly to obtain yet another win. Chai Xun SIN finished 2nd and compatriot Terence Choo finished 3rd.
Race 13
The current Byte CII Champion, Darren Choy SIN, held off the strong challenge from Thailand's Natthawut Peanyaem to clinch the win for Race 13, while Terence Choo SIN completed a hat-trick on the day placing third in all 3 races.
Going into the final day of racing, Keerati tops the standing and is 6 points clear ahead of 2nd placed Darren Choy SIN.
A mere 5 points separate fifth placed Nattawut Peanyum THA and Choy.
More than enough races have been sailed to constitute a Championship but, if at least two more are sailed, a third drop race will be allowed which will more than likely affect the final standings. It is proving to be a very exciting finale.
Day 3 sees Thailand and Singapore firmly established as the powerhouses
November 27, 2009
Go to the Royal Varuna YC for results
4 races were completed on Day 3 of the Asian YOG Qualifier with winds ranging from 8 to 10 knots. Each race (1 triangle and 1 sausage) took approximately 35 minutes.
Race 7
Nathan Tang SIN took the early lead in Race 7 and managed to hold off the challenge of 2007 Byte CII World Champion, Keerati Bualong THA to finish in pole position. Darren Choy SIN, the current Byte CII World Champion took 3rd position.
Race 8
Singapore dominated Race 8 taking the top 4 positions and a total of 7 sailors in the top 10 positions. Darren Choy claimed the top spot followed by compatriots Mark Wong, Terence Choo and Nathan Tang. Malaysian Khairunneeta Binti Mohd Afendy, with his best finish in the series, took 5th spot.
Race 9
The wind freshenen in Race 9 and there were gusts of up to 12 knots. Nathan Tang SIN rounded the top mark first and maintained his lead over Nattawut Peanyaem THA who finished 2nd. Darren Choy SIN claimed the 3rd spot.
Race 10
Darren Choy capped the fine performance of the Singapore sailors on Day 3 by winning Race 10. At the end of Day 3, Keerati Bualong THA and Nathan Tang SIN shared top honours with 19 points each. Nattawut Peanyaem THA is 6 points behind in 3rd place, followed closely by Terence Choo and Darren Choy, both from Singapore who are tied 1 point behind Nattawut.
6 more races are scheduled and it will be an exciting showdown between the 2 Asian powerhouses, Thailand and Singapore. Stay tuned for updates on Day 4!
Day 1 and Day 2 racing completed with Thai sailors holding top two positions
November 26, 2009
Day 1
On the opening day of the Youth Olympic Games Asian Qualifier, 3 races were held in winds averaging 12 knots and waves of up to 1.5m. 2007 Byte World Champion Keerati Bualong (THA) lead the pack with a strong 1-1-2 finish, followed closely by compatriot Natthawut Peanyaem with a 2-2-1 score. Nathan Tang (SIN) stood third with 3-3-5.
Day 2
This day started out with light winds averaging 9 knots. With an air temperature of 26 degrees Celsius (sea temperature in Pattaya is 18 Degree Celsius), this served as a good gauge of the sailing conditions of the 2010 Youth Olympics to be held in Singapore.
Race 4 started with a light breeze of about 8 knots and Singapore sailors capitalized on this to finish in the top 3 positions. Nathan Tang finished first followed closely by Darren Choy, the current Byte CII World Champion, in second and compatriot Chai Xun in third place. Keerati Bualong (THA) claimed the fourth position.
Sailing conditions were unchanged in Race 5 and once again Singapore sailors claimed the top 3 positions. This time, Nathan Tang finished first followed by Darren Choy and Terence Choo, the 2009 Byte CII Canadian Champion. Keerati again finished fourth.
Wind conditions strengthened in Race 6 with gusts to 12 kts and, this time, Keerati (THA) stormed into the lead and never lost it. Terence Choo finished in second and Natthawut Peanyaem (THA) in third.
At the end of Day 2 of racing, Keerati (THA) leads with 9 points. Nathan Tang (SIN) and Natthawut Peanyeam (THA) are four points behind Keerati and tied at 13 points each.
There are three Country spots in the YOG up for grabs in this qualifier in both the male and female singlehanded disciplines. The top three countries qualifying at present (excluding Singapore with the host's bye) are the same:
Male
THA (Pongwichean)
MAS (Jais)
CHN (Zili)
Female
CHN (Min)
MAS (Latif)
THA (Thanawitwilat)
With 10 more races scheduled, this qualifier is building up to an exciting finish. Stay tuned for updates on Day 3!
First of the Youth Olympic Games Continental Qualifiers gets underway in Thailand
November 25, 2009
50 Asian sailors from Thailand, Japan, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, India, China, Malaysia and Indonesia are in Pattaya to select the Asian male and female entries to the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in August 2010.
Above, sailors on the lawn of the Royal Varuna YC get ready for the Practice Race. Thai and Singapore sailors dominated the race with 2007 World CII Champion, Keerati Bualong of Thailand, winning this warm up. Keerati also won the 2008 Asia-Pacific CII Championship, sailed in Pattaya, but will have his hands full with Darren Choy of Singapore, the current CII World Champion from the Kingston Ontario event.
Singapore, the host nation, has a bye into the Games but the remaining qualifiers will be selected from amongst the top three different Countries in the final standings for both male and female finishers. All CII Championships are open events with male and female sailors scored together and final placings will be based on their finishes in the overall scoring.
Although it is the sailor who will qualify their Country with their finish, it should be stressed that this event qualifies the Country, not the sailor. The ISAF Member National Authority (MNA) of the qualified Country will select the sailor who may, or may not, be the one who sailed in this event.
Keerati Bualong, Thailand, Byte CII 2007 World Champion 
Darren Choy, Singapore, Byte CII 2009 World Champion
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