Cuban flag and crew vessel MICARA anchored in the Ernest Hemingway International Sailing Club of Havana Thursday -west of the Cuban capital- as part of the Saint Petersburgh-Havana Regatta.
After almost three days of navigation, the vessel Micara with three crew members arrived in the Hemingway International Sailing Club and became the first Cuban boat in completing the voyage from the US national territory in an official regatta since 1958, 60 years ago.
Hemingway International Sailing Club Commodore Jose Miguel Diaz Escrich received the vessel at the dock Thursday.
The crew of the Micara is composed by Fernando Cabrera Valle, president of the Regatta Committee; José Felipe Recio Pando, Counter Commodore (Liutenant Commander) and Juan Pellón Rodríguez, sailor.
The first vessel in the regatta to arrive in havana was US MERLIN, with 13 crew members, which sailed from Saint Petersburgh, Tampa, Florida, on February 26 and arrived in Havana on Wednesday morning.
Though at the start, the participation of 22 sailboats was announced, a total of 20 finally took part, of which only two remain to touch the ground.
In the program of the St. Petersburg-Hvana Regatta, several activities are scheduled, among them a nautical parade that will arrive on March 3 at 11:00 hours local time. One hour later, all the vessels will be gathered in front of the Morro Castle in Havana.
This type of regattas – and other nautical competitions – was rescued recently due to the restoration of diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba.
Since the founding of the Hemingway Club of Cuba, Escrich worked to revive this historic nautical event, which was only possible with the process of normalization of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The St. Petersburg-Havana Regatta started in 1930, being the first between the USA. and Cuba, and its last edition dated from 1959.
(Prensa Latina)