Santander’s CEAR becomes the permanent base for the RFEV’s 2032 squad

The programme strengthens coaching and support services for sailors, with the aim of giving them 250 days on the water each year.

The Príncipe Felipe high-performance sailing centre (CEAR) in Santander is now the permanent base for the 2032 squad of the Real Federación Española de Vela (RFEV), Spain’s sailing federation. Following the refurbishment of its residential facilities, the centre, in the Port of Santander, can accommodate more young sailors preparing for a future in Olympic sailing. The federation can now offer them a structured, year-round training programme with more time on the water, accommodation and greater access to coaching, physical conditioning and psychological support.

The new training model aims to increase the number of days sailors spend on the water from 160–180 to 250 a year. Javier González-Pardo has joined the programme as the resident coach at the CEAR, working alongside the coaches for each class.

The programme began in October, after the championships for the single-handed classes had concluded, and offers two training options.

Some sailors will combine training camps in Santander with sessions at home, which they must log on the RFEV’s SailData platform. Others, particularly those in the double-handed classes, will make the CEAR their main training base and spend much of the year in Santander.

The centre’s expanded support team also includes strength and conditioning coach Danny Mamián and psychologist Ángela Andúgar. Andúgar will work with the group on communication and goal-setting. This support forms part of the teams’ training and their day-to-day life together at the centre.

Sailors from all classes will also attend sessions on the racing rules and take part in workshops on equipment maintenance and ropework to help them become more self-sufficient.

Xisco Gil, the RFEV’s director of Olympic preparation, said, “Internationally, Spain ranks second on results in our priority youth classes. That reflects the excellent work our clubs and regional federations are doing at grassroots level. We know the step up to Olympic sailing is always a difficult transition and that some sailors leave the sport at that stage. Through this programme, the RFEV wants to give those who choose to take that step the best possible support to continue developing. A permanent base in Santander will give our young sailors more time to train and raise their level of performance. It will also give them the professional environment they need to combine top-level sailing with their studies.”

Ion Chicoy, the RFEV’s deputy technical director and head of physical preparation, said, “We work closely with the regional federations and clubs to identify talented sailors and help them progress into the Olympic classes. This programme makes the most of the RFEV’s resources so that cost or logistics need never stand in the way of our most promising sailors. The response from the sailors at the first training camps in Santander has been fantastic.”

Selection for the 2032 programme follows a joint assessment by the RFEV’s technical staff and the sporting directors of the sailors’ regional federations and clubs. The starting point is how sailors on the national squads for the priority classes have performed at national and international championships. Selected sailors are then invited to assessment camps, where coaches evaluate their performance and consider them for a place on the programme.

The RFEV funds almost the entire programme. The annual participation fee, usually paid by the sailor’s regional federation or club, covers just 16% of the actual cost. It includes coaching, travel to competitions and training camps, accommodation at the CEAR and at regattas away from Santander, and entry fees for agreed events on the calendar. Sailors pay for their own meals and for travel within Spain from home to the CEAR.

Sailors also have access to grants covering 20% of the cost of new equipment, as well as additional scholarships based on competitive results.

The refurbishment of the centre’s residential facilities has made it possible for the 2032 squad to use the CEAR as its permanent base. All 15 rooms and the communal areas, including the lounge and meeting room, have already been modernised.

The work forms part of a wider upgrade of the centre, backed by a €900,000 investment from the Consejo Superior de Deportes (CSD), Spain’s National Sports Council. The improvements are designed to meet the needs of sailors who live and train together at the centre.

The next priorities are to refurbish the kitchen and extend the gym. Later phases will include replacing the affected glazing, renewing the flooring and part of the hangar roof, and refurbishing the team changing rooms.

In addition to CSD funding for the refurbishment, the CEAR receives support from the Autoridad Portuaria de Santander and the Gobierno de Cantabria to help establish it as a centre that attracts talented sailors from Spain and abroad.

The RFEV and its national squads, including the pre-Olympic squad and the 2032 squad, rely on the support of institutions and businesses committed to sailing, the sport that has won Spain the most Olympic gold medals.

The RFEV’s sponsors are Iberdrola, Quirónprevención and Loterías y Apuestas del Estado. Its institutional sponsors are the Consejo Superior de Deportes, the Comité Olímpico Español and Universo Mujer, alongside the Autoridad Portuaria de Santander and the Gobierno de Cantabria through the Consejería de Cultura, Turismo y Deporte, Deporte Cantabria and the Sociedad Regional de Cultura y Deporte. Its official suppliers are Azul Marino, Nippon Express, Murimar Seguros, Marinepool and Enovis. ADESP and World Sailing are its institutional partners.