FALMOUTH Tall Ships race 2021 event has been cancelled for the second year running due to Covid - but the people behind the event say other options are being looked at.

The announcement was made by the organisers this afternoon (June 22) following a meeting between the Falmouth organisers and Sail Training International on Friday to discuss the situation.

The decision was made by Falmouth Town Council, the Falmouth Town Team, the Falmouth Tall Ships Association and key strategic partners.

A statement issued to the Packet this afternoon by the Falmouth Town Team said that with the continuing uncertain situation throughout Europe and across the globe in relation to the COVID pandemic meant the event planned for August 17-19, 2021 had been cancelled.

But they said that other possible options are being looked at that would be announced by the team in the near future

"This news will perhaps not come as a surprise," the team said in a statement. "The Covid situation and in particular, the highly transmissible Delta variant continues to severely affect international travel, the events sector and, crucially for this event, the ability for the tall ships to travel and safely accommodate crew - a key aspect in respect of their commercial viability."

The Mayor of Falmouth, Councillor Steve Eva said: “This is of course disappointing news but understandable. We know the tall ships events are loved by many people in Falmouth, Cornwall and further afield but given the current situation and in particular the challenges faced by the ships and their captains, it is the correct decision based on the information available at this moment in time.

"I know that a lot of work has gone into the planning of the event by the Town Team and partners, and I’d like to thank them all for their efforts.”

The Falmouth Town Team (a public private partnership between Falmouth Town Council and Falmouth BID) said it will be providing further updates in the coming weeks. People can go to www.falmouth.co.uk or keep an eye on the Packet website for further news.

The ever changing situation with Covid in Europe and the rise in Covid cases in Falmouth has meant that there were difficulties getting crews together to sail the boats, which is crucial for ensuring that the event is commercially viable.

The writing was on the wall after the port city of Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, which was supposed to host International sail training regatta The Tall Ships Races 2021 as one of the port cities, announced it would cancel this year's event which would return to the Baltic Sea in 2024. Tallinn will hold a festival in the city's five ports on June 16-18, instead.

It was announced back in November of last year that the event was coming back to the town but in the end the plan was beaten by Covid.

The race was due to start in Falmouth on August 19 with vessels arriving during the previous week. If it had gone ahead the maritime event would have marked the sixth time Falmouth had hosted the tall ships, with the inaugural one for the town being held in 1966.