With the edition of this 2017 will be held the twelfth International edition of the "Vila de Palamós" of optimist, and I want to explain to you that, it was not easy to get home an event of this calibre, because during the years 2003 to 2005 we developed a plan of recruitment that began when it ran the year 2003 and we were the Howth- Ireland, with Marta (my wife) and Nil (only one year old and this 2017 will compete for the last time in Optimist in Palamós) and we visit Mr. Wilkes (Secretary of the IODA, today Optiworld), to ask for the support to organize a training race that will match training, coexistence and level competition days.

It was nothing easy, and we were working hard to get home a high-level event International, until in 2004 and 2005 we were in Hyeres with Kenneth Andreasen, who at that time worked for IODA and organized a high-level clinic, whom we convinced to visit Roses and Palamós with the aim of collaborating and building what is today the "Palamos Optimist Trophy." All the actions we are carrying out were always supported by the Catalan Vela Federation, with the Workers at the front, who provided us with everything necessary to achieve the desired goal. In this period the collaboration of the technicians Toni Rivas and Ramón Aixemeno, with whom we were in Hyeres and worked hard to design the format of what today is 15 days of international training and competition.

Many people wonder why Palamós, and the truth is that, to Kenneth and I it was not very difficult to choose between Roses and Palamós, because in Palamós he treated us as a true host Mr. Xavier Ribera, and instead in Roses they left us lying at the door of the two hotels we had agreed to visit with the friend Manel Pedreira.

There are already 12 editions, but as a project more than 15 years ago that started to grow!!!

Dixit!!

Pep Subirats