How world sport may need to adjust

We know Pamala Baldwin though her sailing exploits, as the Caribbean Sailing Association (CSA) had awarded the Antigua-based skipper and her J/122 Liquid team the CSA Traveller’s Trophy for the second year running.

Although the 2020 racing season was cut short due to the worldwide COVID-19 disease, Team Liquid had already earned a class win in CSA 1 at Grenada Sailing Week, second in CSA 2 in the RORC Caribbean 600, and second in CSA 3 at the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta.

But we didn’t know her professional side which she shares in this update on how the coronavirus pandemic was impacting her region and the world:

My business is recruiting for hospitality superyachts and professional race (sailing) crews. Hours daily I speak with medical research professionals, hotel chain owners, private jet companies, regatta organizers, and economists.

Here’s the collective opinion of the disease’s impact… they all agree the pandemic is here to stay for years as no vaccine will work because COVID-19 keeps morphing. A nightmare!

Last week was a good example…as soon as outsiders arrived in Antigua, we went from zero cases to 69 (from America).

It seems the ONLY way to assure safety, and to move forward with sailing and racing, is to organize for all arrivals to be pre tested BEFORE they travel. Nothing else will work. This is a huge undertaking, to be coordinated with the airlines and the World Health Organization, and the ports which yachts are entering. Seems implausible but most likely true.

So something radical has to be in place. If arrivals enter our countries and are tested positive, they’ll not be able to enjoy anything, they’ll be quarantined, so the ONLY solution is preemptive… a pre-flight or pre-passage test and quarantine until take off.

I for one am gutted.