Nespresso Cup racing 2010. Image copyright Emmanuel Nguyen Ngoc.
by Julie Royer
With only one week to go until the start of the second edition of the Nespresso Cup to be held over the 6th to 8th May, eight Wally yachts representing a diverse range of these unmistakable sleek and stylish yachts will be gathering in the beautiful harbour of Portofino in the coming daysahead of official registration on Thursday, 5th May. Joining the leading Wally owners, crewand Nespresso Cup Ambassadors will be Managing Director of Emirates Team New Zealand, Grant Dalton, who last week officially confirmed that the Kiwi syndicate would be challenging for the 34th America’s Cup supported by Nespresso. At the announcement in Auckland, Dalton acknowledged the support of the team’s sponsors: “We welcome Nespresso as a team sponsor for the 34th America’s Cup. Nespresso is well known in sailing circles and a long-time supporter of the sport. Emirates Team New Zealand values its association with premium international brands like Nespresso, whose continuous innovation and commitment to success are a core part of the culture.”
Esense at 44m(143ft) is the largest Wally yacht to be competing with the 24m (80ft) Inti andRyokan 2 at the other end of the scale. Indio, Y3K, Dark Shadow, Kenora andlast year’s Nespresso Cup victors Magic Carpet2 complete the entrylist for what will be an intense regatta exclusively for the Wally Class. Wallyfounder, Luca Bassani, commented: “The flexibility we have is great, because we can have races at the right moment in the right wind and you don’t have to have a start just because there are other classes. Having three or four days only for you, you can wait for the right weather window to have the best races. It is like it used to be in the golden age of the Maxis in the 1980s when the Maxis were sailing by themselves with their own race committee and courses and they were really having fantastic racing.”
The yachts will be divided into two divisions, overall and performance, with a low scoring system being applied with each yacht being allowed to discard their worst result once five or more races have been completed. Racing for the Nespresso Cup will start 1100 CET on Friday, 6th May under the race management of the Yacht Club Italiano, one of the oldest and most prestigious Yacht Clubs in the Mediterranean.
The first edition of the Nespresso Cup in 2010 brought together some of sailing’s most respected world-class sailors, and the second edition of the Nespresso Cup isno different with Wally owners and crews representing the UK, France, Germany,Holland, Italy and the USA. Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones owner of Magic Carpet2, has recruited many of his winning crew from 2010 including American Tom Whidden, who has three America’s Cup events with the legendary Dennis Conner, Dutchman Marcel van Triest one of the world’s most sought after navigators and meteorologists, and Volvo Ocean Race star Guy ("Nipper") Salter as bowman. In addition, Nespresso Cup Ambassador Jochen Schümann will be providing the tactical nous as Magic Carpet2 endeavour to lift the stunning Nespresso Cup Trophy, designed by leading German designer Konstantin Grcic, once more.
Alongside thesetalented sailors will be existing Nespresso Cup Ambassadors Frenchman Loick Peyron, who has just returned victorious from the double-handed Barcelona World Race, and Italy’s Francesco de Angelis, whilst Samantha Davies is also welcomed to the Nespresso ‘family’ as a new ambassador this year. Bassani concludes that he likes the family flavour of the Nespresso Cup, the club feeling and the involvement of the sponsor: “The sponsor in this case doesn’t remain someone far away, they are part of the competition. I think everyone is very, very happy about the event.”
List of Entries : Nespresso Cup 2011
Name/ Owner / Length
DarkShadow / André-Jacques Auberton-Hervè / 30.45m
Esense /Holding Montenegro / 43.70m
Kenora /Long Beach Ltd / 32.72m
Indio /Andrea Recordati / 30.50m
Inti/ Lauro Buoro / 24.00m
Magic Carpet2/ Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones / 29.00m
Ryokan 2 /Philippe Ligier / 24.00m
Y3K /Claus-Peter Offen / 30.50m
About YCI
The Nespresso Cup will be hosted by the Yacht Club Italiano, which is alsoresponsible for the race management of the event. The YCI was founded in 1879and is one of the oldest Yacht Clubs in the Mediterranean. It runs theprestigious annual Giraglia Cup jointly with the Yacht Club de France, and has been home to the Luna Rossa America's Cup challenge, fronted by Francesco deAngelis.
About the venue
Portofino,the "Port of the dolphins" (Portus Delphini), as it was named in Latin by the Romans due to the large number of these marine mammals living in the bay, is a small fishing village of the Genoa province. Having retained most of its original character, it has become a tourism hotspot in the 1950s after having attracted many wealthy celebrities and industry barons who built luxurious villas in the surrounding hills during the 19th century. Portofino's vibrant waterfront offers an astounding variety of cafés and restaurant, in the purest Italian tradition, yet with still only over 500 inhabitants, the village kept its intimate and genuine feel.
Nespresso Cup
