A LASER Radial sailor from the Isle of Wight is in Portugal training with a specialist team of coaches helping him to realise his dream of representing Great Britain.

Amid lockdown in the UK, Arthur Farley — supported by the Isle of Wight Council’s talented athlete scheme and Wightlink — is spending the summer with his coaches at Viana Sailing, in Viana do Castelo, northern Portugal.

They have been working with Arthur, 16, the past year.

Isle of Wight County Press: Arthur Farley in action.Arthur Farley in action.

Days before lockdown in mid-March, Arthur won at the second World and European Qualifier event of the year, from a quality fleet of 50, making him one of the youngest to win a qualifier.

All being well, Arthur’s competitive sailing calendar will resume in late August for the UK National Championships, followed by Kiel Week (Germany) and the European Championships (France) this autumn — all rescheduled due to Covid-19.

Arthur said: “Luckily, another sailor came to train with me just before lockdown and ended up staying with our family throughout.

“Although unable to get on the water, we worked on strength and stamina training thanks to my parents fitting a gym.

“Being in Portugal is a brilliant opportunity for me to improve to help me become an Olympic sailor one day.”