A nailbiter
The Louis Vuitton Cup Final is taking place in Barcelona from 26 September to 5 October (up to the 7th with reserve days), with the last two Challengers battling it out for the privilege to take on Defender of the America’s Cup, Emirates Team New Zealand.
The Italians on Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli are duelling with the Brits on YCM member Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS Britannia. The rules are simple: the first to win seven matches goes through as the official Challenger to Emirates Team New Zealand led by Matteo de Nora, member of YCM’s Management Committee.
Young guard at the rendezvous
Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez
Saint-Tropez celebrated the 25th anniversary of the legendary “Les Voiles”. Ideal conditions greeted the 250 boats competing in a week of spectacular racing organised by the Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez. Among this fleet of legends of the sea the young team from Yacht Club de Monaco attracted attention on Loïc Pompée’s Le Joy, the personification of a youth revival in sailing.
Anne Schouten triumph
Lorna Whittlesey Ladies Regatta
Anne Schouten is a lady who is very involved with the Pink Wave group of some 50 women from Yacht Club de Monaco who share their passion for sailing and racing on YCM’s gaff cutter Tuiga. Anne is a regular on the scene racing on J/70s as well as Tuiga.
This weekend she was on the other side of the Atlantic in Connecticut flying the YCM flag at the Lorna Whittlesey Ladies Regatta, an all-female event on IDEAL18 sailboats, organised by the Indian Harbor Yacht Club.
With 10-12 knots of wind and favourable conditions on the water, Anne sailing with an American crew mate from the Annapolis Yacht Club dominated the competition to win the trophy. “It was a fabulous experience. I’m really happy to have been competing and especially having won it”. The regatta mirrors the Woman Leading Sailing Trophy organised by Yacht Club de Monaco.
Promising start
Optimist – Opti d’Or – Saint Raphaël
A fleet of Optimists took over the venue for the Opti d’Or, a league regatta organised by Club Nautique de Saint Raphaël. Four races for the Minimes (older group) and three for the younger Benjamin category were completed in ideal conditions with a light 6 to 12 knot breeze on a flat sea.
This first league event was full of promise for the upcoming season, if the results achieved by the Monegasque delegation are anything to go by. With 65 Optimists in the Minimes fleet, YCM’s young sailors did not disappoint with Océane Schroeder coming 23rd just ahead of Frederik Holst, 25th, with Joséphine Dobbelaere 47th. In the Benjamins, the ambition is there as reflected in the rankings and superb 5th place clinched by Louis Faivre while Victor Holst came 9th ahead of Sacha Mousny 14th, Julian Lampert 15th, Anastasyia Verpeka Dolling 16th and 1st in the girls. Mona Benchekroun and Victor Marquet finished 19th and 21st respectively.
End of season for TP52
TP52 – Valencia 52 Super Series Royal Cup
At the 52 SUPER SERIES finale in Valencia, Alegre led by Yacht Club de Monaco member Andres Soriano really stood her ground in the 13-strong fleet of international entrants. Despite tough competition, Alegre produced a good result in coming 9th in the final overall ranking, enough to put this team in 5th place for the season after five regattas and 41 races.
Results galore
Régates Royales de Cannes
The 46th Régates Royales ended Saturday after an intense week of demanding conditions. Crews had their patience tested the first day as strong winds kept them all ashore, but Wednesday turned up trumps with an exceptional day for sailing. Three races on the course were completed without any problems on the starts. Gloomy skies and no wind saw another race day cancelled, but the remaining ones more than compensated with the 12 categories able to make up for lost time and for some climb the rankings.
Among event favourites was a significant fleet from Monaco determined to get top billing.
Argynne III did just that winning the Classic Yacht Cruiser, while Kostia Belkin on Viola did YCM proud with 2nd in the Vintage Gaff. In the Big Boat class, the crew on Yacht Club de Monaco’s flagship Tuiga also clinched a podium by coming 3rd as did Angelo Mazzarella on Carron III in the Vintage Marconi. In the Classic Race, Massimiliano Ferruzzi’s Il Moro di Venezia finished 5th.
Highland Fling 18 wins Multihull Cup 2024 after nail-biting final
Multihull Cup – Mallorca
The Multihull Cup 2024 ended in spectacular fashion in Mallorca with victory secured by a whisker with 20 seconds separating the top two in the final ranking.
In the last 24-nautical mile inshore race, it was touch and go as to who would win between Yacht Club de Monaco member Lord Laidlaw’s Highland Fling 18 and Adrian Keller’s Allegra.
In testing conditions off the south-west coast of Mallorca, Highland Fling 18 managed to pull away and finish 13 minutes ahead of Allegra. But the wait for the verdict in corrected time kept everyone on tenterhooks until the announced that Highland Fling 18 had indeed won by 20 seconds after two and a half hours of racing.
Added to the win of a previous race, the result meant Highland Fling 18 won the event.
Deep dive into ecological and social issues affecting yachting
29th Captains’ Forum
On International Maritime Organization (IMO) World Maritime Day, the day after the Owners’ Lunch, Yacht Club de Monaco held its annual Captains’ Forum that gathered over a hundred superyacht captains, the linear length of their commands totalling 4,200m, and industry specialists. The meeting is in line with the collective ‘Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting’ approach and saw some fascinating discussions on the image of yachting. Before the 29th Captains’ Forum, a survey conducted among 130 superyacht captains revealed key trends affecting the sector’s future.
Owners get together
Under the aegis of the collective ‘Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting’ approach, Yacht Club de Monaco is positioned as an institution in the heart of the Principality that remains true to its traditions. Hence why every year the Club organises an Owners Lunch on the opening day of the Monaco Yacht Show, an event that has become a ‘must-show’ and on Wednesday saw 60 owners of YCM flagged yachts gathering for lunch.
Betting on the future for yachting’s ecological and economic transition
The 4th Monaco Smart & Sustainable Marina Rendezvous concluded today at Yacht Club de Monaco after two packed days of conferences, networking and presentations. Organised by Monaco Marina Management (M3), the event attracted 250-plus maritime industry professionals from all over the world who came to meet innovators. Their shared goal is to modernise and make maritime infrastructures more sustainable. The meeting demonstrated how sustainability can drive change. Twenty selected startups and scaleups, around ten architect firms and a dozen marinas attended. “Tomorrow’s yachting must be smart and sustainable. Maritime infrastructures have to adapt to new needs and this event puts the spotlight on those changes,” said José Marco Casellini, CEO of M3.