Match Racing Tour begins in USA

The 2024 World Match Racing Tour gets underway with 17 teams and over 100 of the world’s top match racing sailors competing across back-to-back events in Long Beach, CA. Using Catalina 37s, the Grade 2 Ficker Cup (April 19-21) is followed by the Grade 1 Congressional Cup on April 24-28, with both events hosted by Long Beach Yacht Club, this year celebrating its 95th Anniversary.

Eight teams from five countries will compete at the Ficker Cup with the top three finishers advancing to the expanded 12-team field for the the 59th edition of the Congressional Cup.

The oldest continuously-held sailing match race regatta in the world, the 2024 Congressional Cup roster has defending champion Chris Poole, USA (Riptide Racing), five-time Congressional Cup winner Ian Williams (GBR, Team Gladstone’s Long Beach), and 2009 Congressional Cup winner Johnie Berntsson (SWE, Berntsson Sailing Team).

Also seeking the Crimson jacket is Eric Monnin (SUI, Capvis Swiss Match Racing), Jeppe Borch (DEN, Borch Racing), Nick Egnot-Johnson (NZL, Knots Racing), Rocco Attili (ITA, RBYS), and Dave Hood (USA,DH3 Racing).

Returning to the event after 12-years is also four-time Congressional Cup winner Gavin Brady, USA (True Blue Racing). While back on the World Match Racing Tour last year, Brady narrowly missed out on the 2023 Match Racing World Championship title in Shenzhen, China after being defeated by GBR’s Ian Williams in the final.

“It will be a very special week for me being back at the Long Beach Yacht Club and racing in the Congressional Cup,” said Brady. “My match racing started in 1996 at the Ficker Cup and Congressional Cup, I won my first Congressional Cup before one of my crew was even born!”

Tour information – 2024 season – Ficker details – Facebook

2024 Ficker Cup Skippers:

• Scotty Dickson, USA
• Dave Hood, USA
• Megan Thompson, NZL
• Cole Tapper, AUS
• Nicole Breault, USA
• Peter Wickwire, CAN
• Celia Willison, NZL
• Aurelien Pierroz, FRA

2024 Congressional Cup Skippers*:

Chris Poole (35, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA) / Riptide Racing
World No. 1 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Joachim Aschenbrenner, Bernardo Freitas, Mal Parker, Luke Payne, Harry West

Johnie Berntsson (51, Stenungsund, Sweden)/ Berntsson Sailing Team
World No. 3 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Filip Karlsson, Herman Andersson, Fredrik Laangström, Erik Malmberg, Jespre Stålheim

Eric Monnin (48, Immensee, Switzerland)/ Capvis Swiss Match Racing
World No. 2 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Simon Brügger, Marc Monnin, Julien Falxa, Ute Monnin-Wagner, Mathieü Renault

Jeppe Borch (26, Copenhagen, Denmark)/ Borch Racing
World No. 4 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Thor Malthe Andersen, Mathias Rossing, Gustav Wantzin, August de la Cour, Sebastien Pieters

Nick Egnot-Johnson (25, Auckland, New Zealand)/ KNOTS Racing
World No. 8 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Sam Barnett, Zak Merton, Alastair Gifford, Taylor Balogh

Ian Williams (46, Lymington, England)/ Gladstone’s Long Beach
World No. 11 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Richard Sydenham, Gerry Mitchell, Ricky McGarvie, Ted Hackney, Oisin Mclelland

Gavin Brady (50, Auckland, New Zealand)/ True Blue Racing USA
World No. 13 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Chris Cowan, Harry Hall, Ryan Houston, Chris Larson, Joshua Wijohn

Rocco Attili (27, Rome, Italy)/ RBYS
World No. 7 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Alberto Corneli, Andres Guerra, Edoardo Mancinelli Scotti, Luc Camilli Meletani, Gianluca Perasole, Ludovico Mori

Dave Hood (Long Beach, USA)/ DH3 Racing
World No. 37 Open Match Race Rankings
Crew: Nick Blackman, Chris Main, Chris Steele, Steve Natvig, Will Tiller

* Plus the top three skippers from the 2024 Ficker Cup, April 19-21

About the World Match Racing Tour
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 WMRT is awarded ‘Special Event’ status by the sport’s world governing body – World Sailing – and 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 2000, the World Match Racing Tour and its events have awarded over USD24million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors.

Source: LBYC