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Maxi Yacht Rolex CupMaxis off Sardinia: regatta sailing on a grand scale

Tatjana Pokorny

 · 08.09.2019

Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup: Maxis off Sardinia: regatta sailing on a grand scalePhoto: Rolex: Carlo Borlenghi
Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup 2019
The beautiful 30th anniversary show of the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup off Sardinia has come to an end with the award ceremonies. The film and the pictures to indulge in

The 30th anniversary edition of the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup came to an end at the weekend off Porto Cervo with winners in eight classes and wonderful pictures. In the dream area off the Costa Smeralda, the classic event once again lived up to its reputation as one of the most attractive showcases of international sailing. 47 of the world's most impressive yachts took part in eight divisions. And in the end, it wasn't just the winners who celebrated a successful week of racing.

Class winner "Nefertiti"Photo: Rolex: Carlo Borlenghi Class winner "Nefertiti"

This is how the 30th Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup off Sardinia came to an end...

In the Mini-Maxi-Racer class (1), the crew on Dario Ferrari's Italian Botín 72 "Cannonball" finally prevailed at the third attempt, while Roberto Lacore's Vismara/Mills 62 "Supernikka" won the sister class of Mini-Maxi-Racer (2). "I'm very happy for the team," said the owner, who has been taking part in the test of strength in the dream area since 1985, "it was a very nice regatta. This place is wonderful, the boats are exciting. Winning was definitely a challenge. We can only be happy. We have trained a lot. And the boat itself played an important role because we made a lot of changes."

Class winner "Supernikka"Photo: Rolex: Carlo Borlenghi Class winner "Supernikka" Class winner "Highland Fling"Photo: Rolex: Carlo Borlenghi Class winner "Highland Fling"

Stephen Cucchiaro's Swan 601 "Flow" was the best boat in one racer-cruiser group, Riccardo de Michele's Vallicelli 80 "H2O" in the other. In the maxi racers, Irvine Laidlaw's "Highland Fling XI" sailed to the top with three out of a possible five wins on the day, while the most successful racer/cruiser in the maxis was Juan Ball's Swan 90 4.40 FD "Nefertiti". The noble duel between the J-Class yachts "Topaz" and "Velsheda" ended prematurely at 2:1. The "Topaz" crew with helmsman and America's Cup winner Peter Holmberg had to retire prematurely while in the lead because the boat was no longer fit for use from halfway through the regatta due to a technical defect. Terry Hui's "Lyra" dominated the group of five Wally yachts with four victories in seven exciting races. Claus-Peter Offen's crew on the Wally 101 "Y3K" sailed to fourth place.

The craggy sandstone rock formations and azure blue waters are the reason crews return repeatedly to race off the Costa Smeralda

Here to see the results.

As long as the J-Class yacht "Topaz" (in front) was still in the race, Peter Holmberg's crew fought thrilling duels with the crew on classmate "Velsheda"Photo: Rolex: Carlo Borlenghi As long as the J-Class yacht "Topaz" (in front) was still in the race, Peter Holmberg's crew fought thrilling duels with the crew on classmate "Velsheda"
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Tatjana Pokorny

Tatjana Pokorny

Sports reporter

Tatjana “tati” Pokorny is the author of nine books. As a reporter for Europe's leading sailing magazine YACHT, she also works as a correspondent for the German Press Agency (DPA), the Hamburger Abendblatt and other national and international media. In summer 2024, Tatjana will be reporting from Marseille on her ninth consecutive Olympic Games. Other core topics have been the America's Cup since 1992, the Ocean Race since 1993, the Vendée Globe and other national and international regattas and their protagonists. Favorite discipline: Portraits of and interviews with sailing personalities. When she started out in sports journalism, she was still intensively involved with basketball and other sports, but sailing quickly became her main focus. The reason? The declared optimist says: “There is no other sport like it, no other sport with such interesting and intelligent personalities, no other sport so diverse, no other sport so full of energy, strength and ideas. Sailing is like a constantly refreshing declaration of love for life."

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