No wind, No racing at Rolex Swan Cup

Porto Cervo, Italy (September 10, 2014) – The light airs that characterized Day One of the Rolex Swan Cup and Swan 45 World Championship faded away almost completely this morning, leaving the Race Committee no choice but to cancel racing for the day.

After raising the AP flag ashore, and based on reports of fading breeze from support boats positioned around the regatta course, PRO Peter Craig announced at midday that no racing would take place today. The event – which marks the 30th anniversary of the collaboration between the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, Rolex and Nautor’s Swan – continues through Sunday 14th September with racing scheduled each day.

Edoardo Recchi, YCCS Sports Director, is optimistic for the remaining four race days: “The wind looks set to improve over the next few days, bringing better conditions for the regatta. This evening the Mistral is set to blow in and we are seeing forecasts of around 20 knots for tomorrow when all of the divisions will be set a coastal course.”

The six competing divisions will in fact be set a “Island Long Race” which could vary from 30 to 60 nautical miles. Setting courses for a fleet of over 90 boats which span the entire range of the Nautor’s Swan family is no simple matter, as Recchi explains: “The most complex aspect of organizing this regatta, aside from the sheer numbers of boats on the water, is dealing with the huge variety of models and potential speeds in the various divisions. When setting courses we not only have to think about the wind and sea conditions, but also the different performances across the fleet; we have to try to have all the boats crossing the finish line in a pretty brief timespan.”

Racing continues Thursday, September 11, with the first warning signal for the Islands Long Race scheduled for 11.30 a.m. Mistral winds of 15-20 knots are predicted. Racing concludes Sunday.

Event website – Results

Report by event media Photo by ROLEX/Carlo Borlenghi.