Stacked fleet for 2023 Bermuda Gold Cup

The lineup for the Bermuda Gold Cup, a World Championship event of the World Match Racing Tour on October 3-7, is nearly complete with 14 of the 16 invitees confirmed.

The century-old King Edward VII Gold Cup has attracted a world-class field to race in IODs within the confines of Hamilton Harbor. The coed list of skippers for the 71st edition includes the reigning event champion, Taylor Canfield, as well as the reigning Open, Women’s, and Youth World Champions. A total prize purse of $75,000 will be awarded to the top eight teams.

“The lineup for the Bermuda Gold Cup reflects a great cross section of the best match racers in the world,” said Event Chair Jon Corless of host Royal Bermuda Yacht Club. “The Bermuda Gold Cup has invited female skippers dating back to the 1990s, and the club is proud that the Gold Cup is recognized as an event where male and female skippers and crews can compete on an equal playing field.”

The three female skippers are the top three in the Women’s World Match Race Rankings, led by Pauline Courtois (FRA), who recently won the Women’s Match Racing World Championship for the third consecutive year. She returns to the Bermuda Gold Cup for the third time.

“The welcome in Bermuda is always very warm, the sailing area is one of the most beautiful on which we have had the chance to sail, and the level of competition is always incredible,” said Courtois.

Anna Östling (SWE) and Celia Willison (NZL) round out the women’s card in Bermuda and placed second and fourth, respectively, at the Women’s Match Racing Worlds. Östling returns for her second Gold Cup while Willison makes her debut.

The men’s side is led by World No. 1 Chris Poole (USA), who’s making his seventh Bermuda Gold Cup appearance. Poole has ascended to No. 1 in the world on a strong year. He won the Congressional Cup in April, going undefeated in 24 races, and finished second at the GKSS Match Cup Sweden in early July. Both regattas are World Championship events of the World Match Racing Tour.

“Coming out of the coronavirus, we made a change to the way we sail the boat,” said the 34-year-old Poole. “I used to drive and do tactics, but that wasn’t a good formula. I found a tactician in Joachim Aschenbrenner (DEN) who sees the course the way that I do, and that allows me to concentrate more on steering and boatspeed. I think it’s worked out well.”

Other skippers include Johnie Berntsson (SWE), Taylor Canfield (USA) and Ian Williams (GBR), who collectively have won four of the past five Bermuda Gold Cups dating back to 2014.

In 2020, when the Bermuda Gold Cup was last raced, Canfield beat Williams in an epic final sailed in 12 to 20 knots of wind on Hamilton Harbor. The key to the match was the pre-start of Race 2, when Canfield seemed to drive Williams into the port side of the commentary boat. Williams received an on-water penalty and after the race was assessed a points penalty for damage caused in the collision.

Neither Canfield nor Williams have done much match racing in the past couple years, as evidenced by their high world ranking, but both will be among the favorites when the Gold Cup returns to the water.

“The Gold Cup is such an iconic regatta on the World Match Racing Tour, it is a really important event to have on the Tour,” said Williams. “It is special for me as it was the first WMRT regatta that I won (in 2006), although since then I do not have the best record there. The boats are a challenge for us with the way we are set up, but that won’t stop us trying as hard as we can to get as far in the competition as we can.”

Two other entrants are the reigning Youth Match Racing World Champion, 21-year-old Jeffrey Peterson (USA), and the Open Match Racing World Champion, Nick Egnot-Johnson (NZL).

The final two skippers and crews will be determined in 2023 from the Bermuda National Match Racing Championship and the Oakcliff International.

Tour information – Event details – Facebook

2023 SKIPPER LINE UP
Johnie Berntsson (SWE)
Ted Blowers (GBR)
Jeppe Borch (DEN)
Taylor Canfield (USA)
Pauline Courtois (FRA)
Nick Egnot-Johnson (NZL)
Peter Holz (USA)
David Hood (USA)
Eric Monnin (SUI)
Anna Östling (SWE)
Chris Poole (USA)
Harry Price (AUS)
Ian Williams (GBR)
Celia Willison (NZL)
——————-
Oakcliff International (TBC)
Bermuda Qualifier (TBC)

Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The winner of the WMRT each year is crowned World Sailing Match Racing World Champion.

Previous champions include Sir Ben Ainslie (GBR), Taylor Canfield (USA), Peter Gilmour (AUS), Magnus Holmberg (SWE), Peter Holmberg (ISV), Adam Minoprio (NZL), Torvar Mirsky (AUS), Bertrand Pace (FRA), Jesper Radich (DEN), Phil Robertson (NZL), and Ian Williams (GBR).

Since inception, the World Match Racing Tour and its events have awarded over USD23million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors.