Congressional Cup set for spring start

The 2022 Congressional Cup will have five days of racing on April 19 to 23 for eight elite match racing teams to battle for the Crimson Blazer, joined by the top two finalists from the Ficker Cup, which is slated for April 14 to 16.

After a one-year hiatus due to the pandemic, Congressional Cup racing resumed in mid-September 2021 with host Long Beach Yacht Club returning the event in 2022 to its traditional spring schedule.

Founded in 1965, the Congressional Cup is recognized as the ‘grandfather of match racing,’ and LBYC further revolutionized the game with the introduction of on-the-water umpiring. One of the flagship championship events of the World Match Racing Tour, the 57th Congressional Cup will kick off the 2022 WMRT season.

In the 2021 Congressional Cup, Taylor Canfield (USA) bolted out of the gate to win 16 out of 18 races in the double round robins and advance to the semi finals, where he continued his domination of the event. Capturing his fifth Congressional Cup title made him the winningest skipper in history, as he donned the Crimson Blazer: yacht racing’s equivalent to the The Masters’ green jacket.

Details: https://thecongressionalcup.com

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 USD23million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors. www.wmrt.com