The competition, which is based on the catch and release philosophy, will take place between August 30 and 31 and many boats have been chartered by national and foreign athletes.
The Councillor for Tourism of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria is calling on young people to sign up for the Children's Fishing Competition, which will take place on Friday afternoon in the Port of Pasito Blanco
The crew is ready, the boats are waiting for the starting gun, the rods are ready and the sea conditions are perfect. Everything is ready and prepared for the start of the fourth edition of the IV Open International Deep Sea Fishing Gran Canaria at 9:15 this Friday, heir to the classic Pasito Blanco Fishing Competition and its more than three decades of history and tradition. On this occasion, 36 boats will compete in a race that will take place this Friday and Saturday, August 30 and 31, in the waters of the South of Gran Canaria. In this scenario, the Blue Marlin, known on the Island as Picudo Azul, the fastest sprinter in the Canary waters, is presented as the main objective, under the philosophy of catch and release, without victims, which defines this competition since its origins, since the competition has 35 editions since the initial proposal of the traditional Pasito Blanco fishing competition, which was a pioneer in the concept of tag and release, continued for four years by the International Open.
The competition starts this Friday, but the Open was officially inaugurated this Thursday with the classic Skippers' Meeting, an event that took place at 20:00 p.m. at the Pasito Blanco Pier and where participants collected their registrations and received the relevant instructions from the management of the event, which on this occasion is jointly organized by the Pasito Blanco Yacht Club and the Gran Canaria Chamber of Commerce, in addition to the sponsorship of Gran Canaria Tourism and the participation of the marinas of Puerto Rico and Mogán, along with that of Pasito Blanco.
36 boats will compete for the best catch and release of the Blue Marlin, and a percentage of these will be chartered by national crews, from the Iberian Peninsula, and foreign crews, through local boat rentals, with expert and well-equipped crews to spend long days fishing offshore, far from the rush and worries and, thus, being able to enjoy the competition and the magnificent nautical conditions that the island of Gran Canaria offers for the practice of this sporting activity.
Carlos Álamo, the Councillor for Tourism of Gran Canaria, has reiterated in his latest interventions that this event is the ideal showcase to attract a type of client who is in love with the marine environment and sport fishing and who selects their holiday destination based on the specimens of Blue Marlin, Needlefish, Atlantic Bonito and White Tuna, among other species, especially populated in the waters of the Canary Islands. “This Open aims to become, if it is not already, the best Deep Sea Fishing competition in Europe and our objective is to attract a client who has a higher spending budget,” said Álamo.
“Based on my experience, I believe I can safely say that this event has managed to maintain the family and welcoming spirit with which it was founded by a group of friends, while at the same time it has managed to grow, without losing its identity, to become a very useful tool for the tourism sector,” explained Santiago de Armas, president of the Tourism Commission of the Chamber of Commerce.
As usual, this test will feature rental boats with the presence of foreign crew members. It is a common practice for fishing enthusiasts from the mainland to charter boats at the sports docks of Pasito Blanco, Puerto Rico and Mogán. In addition, there will be participants from the rest of the Islands who have this date marked in red on the calendar of events of regional interest. So far there are five boats from the rest of the Archipelago, three from the Peninsula and between four and five foreigners are expected.
According to the director of the Muelle Deportivo Pasito Blanco and member of the organizing committee of the Open International Deep Sea Fishing, Francisco Torres, “the conditions are going to be spectacular. Fishing has been very lively this last week and if the conditions of last week continue, there will be many catches and releases.”
Children's Fishing Contest
The International Open organisers have scheduled a day for the youngest with the Children's Fishing Competition, on Friday starting at 17:30 p.m., which will take place at the Pasito Blanco Sports Pier and will feature prizes from commercial houses participating in this event.
Thus, one more year, the Gran Canaria International Deep Sea Fishing Open returns, during the last weekend of August, with its usual dose of happiness under the blue sky of Gran Canaria.
In recent years, the number of international and regional participants has continued to grow, reaching a total of 40 boats. In recent years, the Open has consolidated its media impact, with the collaboration and promotion of the MoviStar Plus platform through specific programs included in its schedule such as 'Al Acecho' and 'Veda Abierta'. The last edition featured the talent of artist and fisherman Carey Chen. On this occasion, the Open will feature the participation of a truly luxurious prescriber, Bill Pino, founder of Squid Nation, a specialist in sport fishing in the Mid-Atlantic and one of the most influential personalities in the United States market, who has confirmed his presence and participation in the event and becomes an ambassador for the championship.
