Tall Ships parade of sail cancelled in Falmouth on Friday

The Tall Ships have attracted thousands of people to Falmouth in recent days

The Tall Ships parade of sail in Falmouth has been cancelled, it has been announced.

Organisers said all the organisations and partners in the Tall Ships Races Magellan-Elcano had made the "difficult decision" following forecasts of "deteriorating weather conditions".

It was due to take place on Friday afternoon.

The safety and welfare of the vessel crews were the "foremost considerations", they added.

The parade involves hundreds of boats escorting the tall ships along the coast past Pendennis headland and Falmouth's beaches, and was due to take place on Friday at 15:00 BST.

The parade of sail is a spectacular sight

The tall ships fleet will then follow a racecourse to A Coruna in Spain, and later on to Lisbon in Portugal and Cadiz in Spain.

A statement from Richard Gates on behalf of Falmouth Tall Ships organising group and Race Director Paul Bishop, said: "It is with great regret that, due to the adverse and continually deteriorating weather conditions, all of the organisations and partners involved in The Tall Ships Races Magellan-Elcano have made the difficult decision to cancel all Parade of Sail arrangements on Friday 18 August.

"In addition, The Magellan-Elcano Race Start, will now be a virtual race start at sea on Saturday 19 August."

The statement continued: "The team has taken a multitude of weather forecasts for both Friday and Saturday into careful, professional consideration.

"Ships will now be departing individually on Saturday, dependent upon the dynamic weather conditions and safety considerations for the ships and their crews."

It said organisers "recognised the bitter disappointment that will be experienced by everyone involved and invested in" the event.

People were expected to view the parade from vantage points including Pendennis Point, Gyllyngvase, Swanpool, Maenporth, St Mawes, St Anthony Head and Rosemullion Head.

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