Juan Olábarri will always be remembered as one of the greatest Spanish regatists

Juan Olábarri, Juanito Olábarri... Don Juan Olábarri has left us... one of the most important patterns of the Spanish candle of all time... one of the bow masked of the "Cathedral," of the Real Club Marítimo del Abra-Real Sporting Club... one of the most emblematic.

That wonder, that stradivarius... which is the "Artako" will no longer be the same, without Juan Olábarri De la Sota... which is already part of the best history of the club of Las Arenas for its passion for the candle. He won at the Mediterranean Games held in Naples in 1963 in the Finn class, in which he had previously won several Spanish Championships. Juan Olábarri was a year later to the Tokyo Olympics in 1964.

He also won with the "Mizar 'Channel Race in 1968, on the Channel of the Mancha. He sailed a lot in France and England and finished the Fasnet with the' Machichaco ', with which in 1975 he was first in the Beta class, second in class III, and ninth in the general of all classes, with more than 300 ships. This ship gave him many satisfaction, also winning the' Alfonso XIII 'race, which was the current King's Cup.

"With the 'Machichaco' we won where we were going. We did the Channel, the Limington- Lekeitio..."I remember Juan Olábarri himself a short time ago. Later, with his' Artako 'he has made history in classics like the Gitana Cup, proof that he has won it on 17 occasions. The best memories of Juan Olábarri are those of the Fasnet, especially the one he won in 1975 in that Beta class and the Mediterranean Games. But also those of the 100 miles of Getaria, of which he has the record of doing it in less time, and hundreds and hundreds more competitions.

The years do not forgive, and now it has been our task to lose one of the greatest... I have had the great honour of sharing many things with Don Juan Olábarri... we spoke of 1980, when the thirty years were still far from me... I had a great deal of strength and my objective at the orders of Rafael Olmedo was to enhance the Conde de de Gondomar Trophy... we held an intense board of directors... and Alfonso Paz Andrade was rotuned in his ideas: "If you want to enhance the Count, go to Bilbao and convince Juanito Olábarri to come to compete..." Juanito Olabri, who is Alfonso and who, "It took me several years to meet him personally... first at the Abra in 1987 when Cardinal was the" head of the Maritime "and I went to present the legendary Regata General Optica to Las Arenas... then at my stage in which I was the Director of Communication of the Nautical Week of the Port of Santa Maria by the hand of my friend Nicolás Terry... and it was that Juanito did not fail in the" Sherry "... last in this century, when I was convinced by Josemanu Loredo and Tacos to go to work in Getxo (2000), my relationship with him was very deep and I had to buy the great international life..." Manuel Pedro Seoane, editor.