ClubSwan Racing: Triple success - "Hatari" ahead of "Earlybird" and "Olymp"

Marcus Brennecke should be wearing dry clothes again by now. After the lavish champagne shower that his tactician Markus Wieser gave him on the podium at the Swan Bonifacio Challenge, it was a different story. "I just wanted to show him that it was a catastrophic mistake to shower before the award ceremony," said Markus Wieser, laughing heartily.

ClubSwan Racing: thrilling all the way to the final

The Bavarian tactician and also owner and helmsman Marcus Brennecke had good reason to be happy: "Hatari" (18 points) won the first regatta of the new season after eight races ahead of Hendrik Brandis' "Earlybird" (22 points) with tactician Manu Weiler and Mark Bezner's "Olymp" (26 points) with tactician Jochen Schümann. In the Corsican waters off Bonifacio, the "Hatari" team kept the competition under control until the very end.

"In the last race, we sailed a bit on 'Earlybird'," said Markus Wieser, describing the concentration task. Before the final, the "Hatari" crew had worked out how to secure victory in the regatta. The plan worked out. The two best boats in the series reached the finish line in seventh and eighth place, their worst positions of the week. In the final ranking of the Swan Bonifacio Challenge, however, the overall performances were worth first and second place.

It only became clear at the end that this was actually a German one-two-three, as the third-placed "Olymp" crew beat Leonardo Ferragamo's ClubSwan 50 "Courdileone" on equal points. The Italians had come very close to "Olymp" with a victory in the last race. With one race win and one second place each for the two boats, three third places ultimately tipped the scales in favour of the Bezner team. "Cuordileone" had only one third place to show for the tie-breaker.

Team Hatari: "a cool and fun team"

The three German owners and their crews picked up where they left off last season in the premier class of ClubSwan racing off Bonafacio: Marcus Brennecke's "Hatari" (Bayerischer Yacht-Club/Norddeutscher Regatta Verein) celebrated her fifth consecutive season championship in the fifth year of ClaubSwan racing in 2024. Mark Bezner's "Olymp" won the world championship for the first time. Hopes are correspondingly high for this season too.

The "Hatari" crew in particular, who regularly win two or three events a year and have always won the season championship, would love to win world championship gold again. "We are a good mix of experienced veterans and up-and-coming youngsters. With Nico Kampf and Felix Kaiser, we have two young sailors from the Bayerischer Yacht-Club who are really keen. We have a cool and fun team."

The team also includes the German sailors Malte Päsler and Michael Müller as well as the Austrian Gerd Habermüller, in addition to other international members. "Hatari" owner Marcus Brennecke attests to Markus Wieser's "very good performance" as helmsman and said: "Otherwise we would be so consistently ahead." According to Wieser, he complements the Italian strategist Michele Ivaldi perfectly as a tactician. Wieser's assessment: "Michele is very well organised and structured, I'm more of a free spirit."

ClubSwan Racing in the dream area

It remains exciting to see how the German three-way battle between the friendly owners Brennecke, Brandis and Bezner will end this season at the World Championship and in the Nation's League season standings - and which international crews will be able to intervene. The second showdown in Bonifacio after last year's premiere has once again shown that this area is a discovery.

"We will be back again next year. The area is one of the most beautiful! For sailing, the scenery, the location and the conditions. The natural harbour is super beautiful, you are very sheltered here. There are so many beautiful bays and sandy beaches to the right and left that you actually have to charter a catamaran and explore it all - a dream!" At the start of the Swan Bonifacio Challenge, the crews experienced crisp winds of between 18 and 24 knots, on Friday medium easterly winds of between 12 and 14 knots and in the final 9 to 12 knots.

I love this class. And I love this week. We've had nothing but good days. Anyone can win races here. It's so much fun! What more could you ask for?" Marcus Brennecke

Nicolai Burkart and his crew on "Goddess" also finished the Bonifacio showdown victorious in these winds. They had already secured their biggest success to date in ClubSwan Racing on the previous day. In the single class ClubSwan 36, the German swan prevailed in the battle for the podium places against the Italian "Fra Martina" and "G Spot" from Monaco. Sailing on "Goddess" alongside the owner were David Chapman, Harry Durcan, Alexandra Lauber, Lukasz Czaja, Harrison West and Giulio Desiderata.

A happy man: "Goddess" owner Burkart

"Winning the Bonifacio Challenge is incredible! It's a dream come true. I've already won races, lots of races. But I've never won an entire event," said a visibly moved Nicolai Burkart. He also raved about the Bonifacio area: "It's incredible here! The waves, the wind, I loved it all. Click here to see the final results for all OneDesign groups in the Swan Bonifacio Challenge.

I'm going home a very happy man." Nicolai Burkart

The Nation's League of ClubSwan sailors will continue from 17 to 21 June shortly before Kiel Week with the annual highlight. Off Porto Cervo on the Costa Smeralda, the World Championship medals will be up for grabs in six swan categories. The biggest boats there are also the 50s with three strong teams flying the German flag, all of which have the potential to win.

The ClubSwan racing season will then continue at the Copa del Rey Mapfre from 28 July to 2 August. For their last two regattas of the year, the performance-oriented ClubSwan crews will meet at the European Championship for the Swan Tuscany Challenge (16 to 20 September) and at the Nation's Trophy Final in Saint-Tropez (8 to 12 October).

The highlights from the final day of the Swan Bonifacio Challenge: