In the summer school holidays, Yacht Club de Monaco organises its very popular SeaAdventures Camps of watersports and courses for children aged 7 to 17. The week-long camps are both educational and sporty with a focus on sailing, paddleboarding, kayaking and discovering the marine environment, a chance for everyone to enjoy some thrilling experiences in, on and under the water.
Same time, same place, another activity is also in full swing this summer as the Club continues its drive to make the sea accessible to all. Every week, it welcomes a different group of young people in a vulnerable situation, whether due to a disability, illness or insecurity for a variety of reasons, to try watersports adapted to their situation. It is separate from the SeaAdventures Camps but organised simultaneously.
Last week it was a group of young people hospitalised at the Princess Grace Hospital (CHPG) who enjoyed time out on the sea. This week, the Club is working with the Les Enfants de Frankie Association who coordinate the arrival each day of groups from their partner associations. Every day is different for the dozen children and their carers who take part in specially supervised activities.
Next week it’s the turn of the Monaco Disease Power association, for children and adults with physical or mental disabilities, who make full use of this initiative.
Activities are tailored to participants profiles, for example sailing on Hansa 303 boats, going out on the Echo 90, or paddleboarding and kayaking, supervised by Alex Richard, a coach trained to support people with disabilities and their supervisors.
These sessions are all part of the Navicap programme run by YCM’s Sports Section. Launched three years ago, the initiative took flight thanks to a small fleet of specially adapted boats generously donated by YCM member Elena Sivoldaeva. The YCM currently has four boats, an AIRA 22 and two Hansa 303s, as well as an Echo 90, so are able to accommodate people with a wide variety of issues. Associations can also take advantage of the two sessions on offer each month, all year round.
The highlight of this all-inclusive approach is the Navicap Challenge-Elena Sivoldaeva Trophy, a regatta open to crews of able-bodied and disabled sailors, which meets for the third edition on 28-30 November 2025. Sailing on Hansa 303 boats, some 30 teams of two from across Europe will be descending on the Principality to race in a spirit of inclusion and excellence.
It is through this parallel but complementary approach that the Yacht Club de Monaco turns the best of intentions into action in its unshakeable belief that the sea belongs to everyone.
