In September 2008, near the Polish city of Węgorzewo, the sailing championship of the CISM (Conseil International du Sport Militaire) for members of European countries' armed forces took place. Two Latvian teams, involving participants of the Latvian Naval Forces' junior sailor programme, met with success and came in third and sixth. We're happy for the worthy achievement of the young athletes, because CISM regattas are known to attract experienced world-class yachters.

As of 2008, the Naval Forces' junior sailors' training programme is active in Latvia for its fourth year. The recently finished sailable season saw the students starting to practice also on the Daugava near Rīga's Andrejsala district. A year ago, one Latvian crew had also gone to the European military sailing championship in Poland, where they attained the 7th place among 23 crews. This helped to realise that the young Latvians are fit, both strategically and athletically, to compete against world-class yachters and prize-winners. Following this conclusion, more active practicing by using several Skippi 650 boats began. The same boats also went to the year 2008 regatta.

A CISM champions' regatta is special in the sense that it pitches against one another only the members of armed forces and military organisations. Many of the contestants are veteran athletes or even Olympic medallists. This year's regatta had invited select crews from eight countries: Poland, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and Latvia.

Mr Jānis Grīslis is a sailing instructor who helped the Latvian teams with the preparations. He told us that the first crew, led by Matīss Alviķis, had to compete fiercely against the local Polish athletes specifically during the regatta's last sail, as this was the moment when the Poles realised that the bronze award was "in jeopardy". Then, the top Latvian crew, having liberated itself from the company of two Polish boats who had decided to keep back the Latvians, surpassed the Polish crew #2 and then raced, with all their might, against the #3. Before the last sail, the Latvian crew had been one score-point behind its goal; therefore the securing of bronze required the surpassing of one more contender! According to Grīslis, this was when the young athletes showed their best in terms of both navigating prowess and physical stamina. With a clearly professional determination they went top speed and at the finish outshone the Polish crew #3... by barely a metre's distance!

The Latvian Armed Forces' major Reinis Pudāns, explaining why the CISM event's results are important, admitted that the country's teams hadn't been expected to do this well at the regatta: "These young lads are to be praised for demonstrating their best. It was recognised both by the championship's organisers and by the yachters that our athletes competed passionately and candidly. Although they were among the youngest there, they achieved an excellent result when in the last sail due to their fantastic persistence they outdid the Polish crew, pocketed an extra score-point and thus earned their bronze."