With the start of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda‘s sailing season just a few short days away, the Club’s busy 2015 calendar was presented to journalists as well as sponsors at a press conference in Milan’s Four Seasons hotel. An amazing list of regattas set to be held from March to November is set to have owners, yachtsmen and some of the world’s most impressive vessels flocking to the Club’s twin bases in the fantastic Virgin Gorda yacht charter destination, nestled in the British Virgin Islands, as well as Porto Cervo, positioned in Sardinia.
Riccardo Bonadeo, YCCS Commodore – YCCS Press Conference
The Yacht Club Costa Smeralda’s winter base in the renowned sailing paradise of the British Virgin Islands is ready and waiting for a spectacular fleet of Swan yachts to start the season in style with the Rolex Swan Cup Caribbean (3-7 March), a biennial event held in alternate years to the historic Rolex Swan Cup regatta organized by YCCS, Rolex and Nautor’s Swan in the Mediterranean. The Loro Piana Caribbean Superyacht Regatta and Rendezvous (11-14 March), now in its fifth edition, follows on immediately and brings a fleet of imposing sailing yachts to the BVI. The first portion Caribbean events concludes with the Oyster Cup BVI (13-18 April).
The first boats on the water in Porto Cervo, as always, will be the Club’s Smeralda 888 one-design sloops competing in the Vela & Golf regatta (22-24 May). The fast and highly manoeuvrable vessels, designed by German Frers for YCCS, will be back in action for the Coppa Europa Smeralda 888 (26-28 June) and the Members Championship on 9th August. During the summer “break” a team of YCCS members will also race in Cowes in celebration of the Royal Yacht Squadron‘s bicentenary.
Roberto Kerkoc, Vice President of the Board – YCCS Press Conference
The Mediterranean superyacht season kicks off in Porto Cervo with the Dubois Cup (28-30 May), a biennial event dedicated to the elegant creations of British naval architects Dubois Yachts. The Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta (2-6 June) follows, bringing with it the perfect blend of sport and style that has been attracting the world’s top sailing yachts since 2008. The sailing giants return in force in September for the Perini Navi Cup (2-5 September), open only to vessels from the Italian shipyard acclaimed for seamlessly combining cutting edge technology with luxury finishes. The season concludes with the traditional Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup and Rolex Maxi 72 World Championship (6-12 September) organized in collaboration with the International Maxi Association and Rolex, longstanding official partner of the Club.
Lovers of more purely “combative” racing yachts also have plenty to look forward to as Porto Cervo once again hosts a leg of the 52 Super Series, the Settimana delle Bocche (9-13 June). The RC44 class, another fiercely competitive fleet, visits the Costa Smeralda for the first time on the heels of last year’s successful inaugural event in Virgin Gorda. The Audi RC44 Regatta (16-21 June), is organized in collaboration with Audi, official automotive partner of the YCCS.
YCCS Press Conference – Milan, 27 February 2015
The fleet will in fact return to the picturesque waters of the British Virgin Islands for the RC44 BVI Regatta (24-29 November), an event which concludes the season for the class created by Russell Coutts and brings a very busy year for the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda to a close.
The 2015 season will also be a demanding one for Azzurra, the sporting symbol of the YCCS which this year launches a new hull built at the King Marine yard in Valencia. The TP52 owned by Alberto Roemmers will make her debut in the 52 Super Series in Valencia (19-23 May), before visiting Porto Cervo (9-13 June), Porto Portals – Spain (14-18 July), and Palma de Mallorca (4-8 August), and finally Cascais – Portugal (16-20 September).
“We are looking forward to a very full season which will entail both a lot of hard work and a great deal of satisfaction. The Club is now running at full sail all year round with our Mediterranean and Caribbean bases. What makes this possible is the dedication of the YCCS team and our partners Rolex, Audi and UBS who share our key values and allow us to remain at the forefront of a sector which is in continual evolution,” commented YCCS Commodore Riccardo Bonadeo during the conference.
