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Aspiring young windsurfer James Faley (14) has been being awarded his very own Bic Techno windsurf board donated by the John Merricks Sailing Trust (JMST), the official charity of the RYA OnBoard programme.

James, who is totally dedicated to windsurfing at Osprey Training Centre (OTC), was selected from over 80 applications after competing in the RYA South and South West Zone Championships which took place in Weymouth in September.

The board that the JMST has donated will provide James with the highest quality of equipment to continue to participate in windsurfing. He is delighted with his award: “I love just being myself and my gear against the elements. I am never really affected by the weather as ever since I started the sport I have always sailed through the winter. In fact, it’s probably my favourite time of year as it generally windier! In two year’s time I dream of  being on the European tour circuit, as often when I set myself a goal I will try with all my effort to make what is a dream reality and I work as hard as I can to make it happen. This award will take my skills and social life to the next level.”

Tris Best, Managing Director at OTC, explained how much James deserved this award: “James has showed an immense amount of dogged determination and enthusiasm for windsurfing. His progression in the sport speaks volumes: he has mastered techniques that take others decades to complete satisfactorily and his background knowledge in the sport is incredible given the relatively short time in which he has participated. Most of all, we are delighted to see how James has developed as a person in the time he has been coming to windsurf with us down at the centre. From a very polite yet timid young boy, he has become a very confident and outgoing young man who has become a real role model for the other young windsurfers around him.”

As official RYA OnBoard Charity partner since 2012, the JMST is donating more than 50 single-handed junior pathway boats and boards to promising sailors over five years. Every year, at least one young sailor will be selected from each of the nine RYA Zones and Home Countries to receive two years of exclusive use of the boat or board. The equipment will then be donated to the sailor’s original club or training centre to benefit club training programmes and enable other young sailors to benefit in the future and progress into club, regional and national racing activities.

“This is the fourth year that OB has been supported by the JMST to run this scheme and we are really grateful for their involvement. We’re already seeing these youngsters progressing in the sport in ways they would not have been able to, had it not been for this opportunity," explains RYA OnBoard Development Officer Cat Ferguson.

Ian Walker, double Olympic silver medallist, winning VOR skipper and JMST Trustee, commented: “All at the JMST are delighted to be funding this scheme that supports youth sailors at a grassroots level.  It is wonderful to see the progression and achievements that so many of the sailors supported in the first years of the scheme have made over the last few years.  We hope that the 2016 RYA OnBoard awards will enable the selected youth sailors to develop their talent, much as John Merricks did when he was awarded a club sailing boat at a young age and started on his own pathway to success.”

Run by the RYA, OnBoard is a grass roots programme which introduces sailing and windsurfing to young people aged 8 to 18, through schools, youth groups and training centres. Over a ten year period OnBoard has introduced more than 500,000 children to sailing and windsurfing in the UK, converting over 10% of them into regular participants. For more information about how to get involved in sailing visit www.rya.org.uk/go/onboard