Hungary wins SSL Gold Cup

Canary Islands, Spain (December 3, 2023) – After 23 days and 64 races in Gran Canaria at the 2023 SSL Gold Cup, it all came to the final four, and the winner-take-all Grand Final was won by Hungary.

It all started with 56 nations, qualifying at Lake Neuchâtel to make the final 40 at the Gran Canaria Final Series with five rounds of competition in SSL47 One-Designs to reach this stage.

After getting squeezed at the start alongside Italy, Spain, and The Netherlands, Hungary cleared out to the right and benefited from better pressure in the light winds to claim the lead near the top of the first weather leg. While Spain had caught up at the weather mark, better maneuvering by the Hungarians sprung them free.

Hungarian Captain and Tactician Zsombor Berecz risked it all downwind by going left while the rest of the fleet went right, but still led the Dutch by 25 seconds at the first leeward mark.

The Netherlands team were on the charge, but Hungarian helm Robert Bakoczy was in the zone, while his tactician Zsombor was making all the right calls. For the team who started racing in the 1/16 Finals, they were utilizing that experience over their foes.

The Hungarians rounded the windward mark with a 46 second lead, with just 14 seconds separated Italy, The Netherlands, and Spain.

As the wind continued to drop, the Italians charged but Hungary wove their magic to fend off their opponents. The Hungarian team was comprised of Zsombor Berecz, Robert Bakoczy, Marcell Goszleth, Csaba Adorjan, Kos Lillik, Levente Takacsy, Balazs Tomai, Zsombor Gyapjas, and Aron Nemeth.

Behind them the Italian sealed silver, The Netherlands took bronze while the home Spanish team finished fourth.

The Hungarians had been on site since November 16, having raced through four rounds, facing off against 13 other teams on the water, and over the past 17 days had grown as a team to take the title.

“Our team is special,” noted Berecz. “Very few of them are professional sailors, they have all sorts of jobs and we came together with no sponsor. We did the entire program with our money and I think this is also our strength. Everybody was happy to invest and we deserve it.

“Maybe we are not individually the best sailors in this whole competition, but as a team we are the best, and I’m super proud of that. If you believe that you can win, and you can make everybody believe that you can win, then that’s it. It sounds simple but it’s all in the team.”

Hungary’s helm Robert Bakoczy added, “I think all of us still can’t believe it. It’s amazing and crazy. After our start we just tried to get back the speed as soon as possible. We were expecting a right shift and it came, so we were back in the game a minute after the start. It was hard, but we could solve it.”

Vasco Vascotto, the 27-time world champion tactician for the runner-up team Italy, agreed with the outcome. “Hungary deserved to win. We tried all we could to come back, taking some risks, and I think we deserved to finish second as we tried so hard.”

Dutch helm Nicholas Heiner liked how the event brought the world of sailing – with their different disciplines – together. “You get to sail with guys and girls you would never really sail with, or sail against, the best of each country. I think that’s a really special thing.

“Nobody would say that the Hungarians were going into this event the favorite, into the whole regatta or into this race. But with this format you can do anything. In that way, it’s an awesome format.”

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To watch the racing, click here.

Using the SSL47 One-Designs, 40 teams from five continents are competing in groups of four until the final. Another 16 countries were previously knocked out of the competition in the qualifying series that took place between May and July 2022 at Lake Neuchatel (Grandson, Switzerland), and 24 of the 40 that reach the finals do so directly by their position in the overall ranking of the SSL. The competition program on November 10-December 3 foresees a total of 66 races.