2017 Superyacht Cup Ends on a High

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The Superyacht Cup, a regatta renowned for its warm atmosphere and fierce racing, is not only one of the most hotly anticipated events on the superyacht sailing circuit, but also the longest running regatta of its kind in Europe. Moreover, this thrilling four-day event unites sailors from all corners of the globe and boasts being a regatta where the camaraderie on board, and between boats, always reigns supreme.

This 21st edition of the Superyacht Cup has come to a spectacular end and after three days of riveting racing it was the 32m Bolero, a supremely fast boat, who artfully swept past her competitors and managed to keep her cool under 'deciding-day pressure'. The crew's consistency was the beautiful blue-hulled Bolero's trump card which cinched her well-deserved race and class wins on both Thursday and Friday.

The 32m Bolero, a supremely fast boat, is the overall winner of the Superyacht Cup 2017. ©www.clairematches.com

However, with a number of highly race-orientated superyachts out on the water, competition was, by nature, going to be tough. Yachts like the bone fide flyer Saudade, who although not as young as most of her rivals, proves time and again she's still the boat to beat, and fast racer Ribelle, with her carbon hull and high-tech racing wardrobe, were a hard act to follow. And although the Frers-designed Bolero put up a solid performance it was no mean feat to fight off the chasing 27,5m Atalante 1 and the 39m Atalante, both built by Hoek and built by Claasen. The two, extremely elegant, sisters had been sailing at full throttle in order to try and hunt her down.

The crew of the Frers- designed Bolero enjoying their spotlight moment. ©www.clairematches.com

Apart from being able to revel in watching some of the world's most beautiful sailing yachts glide around the bay, the conditions were also glorious; every day dawned with a picture-perfect Palma sky, and a reasonably good building breeze which meant the sailing sparkled on every single day of the event. Saudade's tactician, Volvo Ocean Race veteran Bouwe Bekking concurs: "the conditions are always superb, here you have guaranteed breeze. It's really nice to come racing over here. It's what the owners want and it's what we want, as you're guaranteed to go racing"

As every year, our dock side social programme was as important as the excitement on the water. Yacht owners and race crew enjoyed the Pendennis Paddleboard Challenge as well as the lively happy-hours sponsored by North Sails and Southern Spars which continued long after the day's winners had been announced. Highlights this year were of course the annual SYC Dock Party and the Owners' Mid-Summer BBQ at the stunning St. Regis Mardavall Mallorca. Bouwe Bekking summarized the overall atmosphere by saying: "It's a really relaxed regatta. After racing there's a very nice ambiance on the dock, the atmosphere is really laid-back and everyone has a really good time."

The Pendennis paddle board relay race proved, again, to be a crowd-puller this year. ©www.clairematches.com

On a final note, we would like to thank our sponsors who have supported us in making this year's edition yet another memorable event. We hope to be able to welcome not only said sponsors but also our loyal fans and the beautiful boats that competed this year, back for our 2018 edition.

Official clothing sponsor, Code Zero, have created a powerful collection for this year's regatta boasting bright colours, as well as unique designs inspired by superyacht racing. If you didn't get the chance to browse their collection on-site, you can still purchase their limited edition garments online here.

For high-res images contact Claire Matches at mail@clairematches.com

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Mon, 26 June 2017

Chapeau Bolero - Overall Winner of Palma's Superyacht Cup 2017

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This morning's on board briefing saw concentrated faces on the aft-deck going into today's deciding St. Regis Mardavall Resort Race.

The race committee sent the fleet on two riveting custom courses ranging between 17 and 22nm, which befitted today's menu of light winds (varying between six and ten knots). The shorter 17nm course was sailed by the awe-inspiring yachts in Class B.

Two was the magic number this morning as in Class A Win Win went into today's race holding a two point lead over second placed Saudade. This well-powered Wally was separated from Ribelle (who sat in third) also with two points. In Class B Bolero went into this third race with a margin of two points over Atalante 1. Two points also stood between this stunning Truly Classic and her newer, bigger sister Atalante.

The first boat (the 32m Southern Wind Farfalla) slid over the line at 13.05, as it were the highly-competitive yachts in Class A that got racing underway today. The 34m Ribelle led the fleet with gusto around the first, second and third mark with Farfalla and the 33m Win Win in hot pursuit! Southern Wind Farfalla ducked behind Win Win on her way to mark three, which resulted in Win Win rounding five minutes and eleven seconds before her, as well as Farfalla dropping two places. A tough tussle ensued between the 34m Ribelle and the Baltic-built Win Win as they sailed neck-and-neck towards the fifth, Aranol, mark, which the uncompromising Win Win managed to round a hair-raising 32 seconds first. Previous event-winner Win Win was unstoppable as she flew over the finish line a mere 39 seconds before the newly-launched Ribelle.

A fierce battle ensued today in Class A between the 33m Win Win and the 34m Ribelle. ©www.clairematches.com

In Class B the impeccably turned out Atalante blazed the trail with Claasen-classic Atalante 1 and the 46m Windrose of Amsterdam trying to hunt her down. The leading pack bunched up while rounding mark two but it was the aforementioned 39m Atalante, designed by Hoek which kept control of the class and rounded ahead of her adversaries. After the third mark she stretched her legs and seriously got into gear speeding over the finish line 13 minutes and one second ahead of her namesake, the beautiful Atalante 1, who slipped across second.

The delightful 27.5m Atalante 1 sailed a flawless race today and captured Class B. ©www.clairematches.com

After corrections were applied, the final calls were made and it was the 33m Win Win who's powerful performance over the last three days consolidated her Class A win by 2 points over second place finisher Ribelle. The latter, a sparkling new yacht designed by Malcolm McKeon, captured Class A today. Captain Federico Biatturi was pleased: "It's been a great pleasure to see her perform so well. We fixed several issues after Loro Piana (her debut regatta) and blew a winch on day one. This set us back but we won first today and second yesterday. It's a great experience and Palma is always a great place to be, a lot of fun" About the close racing this afternoon Biatturi said: "All five of us were very close, of course we will be back and we will try and win it next time!".

In Class B the delightful 27.5m Atalante 1 sailed a flawless race, not leaving a second behind on the race course, which put victory in the bag for this modern classic. However, the overall class win went to welcome return competitor Bolero. Moreover, elegant sail-handling on both Race Day one and two by this sophisticated Frers-sloop resulted in her to officially become the overall winner of The Superyacht Cup 2017! On learning team Bolero had bagged overall victory, a beaming captain commented that: "winning the regatta this year was the cherry on the cake."

This 21st edition of the regatta concluded spectacularly with a festive prize-giving ceremony, which saw all the competing yachts empty and the Superyacht Cup's main tent packed with hundreds of smiling sailors, still enthusiastically talking about today's exhilarating racing.

Teams of at least 20 beaming sailors besieged the stage as 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes were awarded in each class. Amidst the cacophony of whistles and bravo's from the convivial crowd, opponents were assured they would be able to get their own back during our 2018 edition. The best part of the evening was, beyond question, the announcement of this year's overall winner, the 32m Bolero!

The Superyacht Cup and its competitors also presented a cheque of 5,000€ to the long running local charity Joves Navegants. Initiated by an enthusiastic group of sailors, the foundation reaches out to some of the island's less privileged boys and girls through the practice of sailing.

While the winning teams embark on a big celebratory night out, the sun set spectacularly on the Regatta Village, marking the close of another sunny and highly successful edition of Palma's Superyacht Cup.

For high-res images contact Claire Matches at mail@clairematches.com

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Sat, 24 June 2017

Another Boisterous Day's Racing on the Bay of Palma

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Palma's Superyacht Cup doesn't only bring sailors together from all corners of the globe, but is also an event where the camaraderie plays a pivotal role in the regatta's enjoyment. This was most evident during last night's lively SYC Dock Party, where owners, guests and crew got to rub shoulders, relax  and talk 'sailing', to a vibrant soundtrack of the Hogan House Band's uplifting tunes.

Hot sunshine and nice sailing conditions mid-afternoon set the scene for today's second day of racing. The race committee elected an exciting course for each class ranging from 20-25nm, the first, shorter course was sailed by Class B. Both options not only suited today's light conditions but also saw the competition tussling for lanes and safety officers having to keep their eyes peeled. And while the 33m defending champion Win Win and 32m return competitor Bolero came out on top during Race Day One, today could easily see yesterday's non-winners' appetite for victory return the results, securing their spot on the podium.

Racing kicked off at 13.00 and saw the 32m Southern Wind Farfalla get off to a flying start, gliding over the start line two seconds after schedule. The talk of the regatta this year, newbie boat Ribelle, staunchly held on to her lead since the start while she rounded the third (Bahia 1) mark in Class A. However yesterday's top dog Win Win crept up from behind, which resulted in a thrilling overtaking maneuver putting this Baltic built beauty at the head of the pack while rounding mark 4. The next point was as exhilarating as top-gun-trio Win Win, Ribelle and, now, Saudade all rounded within 2 minutes and 7 seconds of each other. Top performer Win Win refused to back down today and slipped over the finish ahead of Ribelle and Saudade, who crossed second and third respectively.

The beautiful modern classic Bolero prevailed again today in Class B. www.clairematches.com

Class B saw yesterday's ruler Bolero maintain her front position albeit with Atalante and Atalante 1, both designed by Hoek and built by Claasen, breathing down her neck, showing us some proper sibling rivalry. The 39m Atalante, flagship of the Truly Classic range, made a bold and early move into clear air which served her well, as she managed to edge out Bolero, rounding mark 4. At this stage the 46m Windrose of Amsterdam, which has sailing legend Bubi Sansó at the helm, had muscled her way into third. The award-winning Atalante kept her leading position and proved her Dutch sailing creds by flying over the finish line first, followed by the 32m Bolero and 46m Windrose of Amsterdam. However, although this classic-style stunner was first over the line, she was not the elapsed time victor. This was the 32m Bolero, a yacht that has proved to be far from the average. She sailed a solid race and thus takes top slot in Class B. Bolero's owner recalls: "Today was a wonderful day. We have a great crew, very knowledgeable and we enjoyed the race very much, it was perfect, and another win today, so a great day for me and the crew." About second place finisher Atalante 1 he commented: "They were chasing us all the time and tried their best to catch up with us, but did not succeed today, but you never know what can happen tomorrow."

In Class A it was the racing-attuned 33m Win Win who ended up with the same amount of points (2) as the fast and sleek 34m Ribelle.

The 33m Win Win not only stormed over the finish line first but also kept her position from yesterday. www.clairematches.com

Sponsors North Sails host today's Happy Hour at the Regatta Bar, where cooling drinks will take the bite out of a very tense second day out on the water. The Daily Race Awards will take place at 18.00. As soon as today's heroes have soaked up their moment in the spotlight, we're sure most sailors will want to cheer on the gung-ho sailors competing in the paddle-powered relay-race, hosted by Pendennis.

While tales of the day's adventures are swapped back on the dock, owners will be heading to the stunning St. Regis Mardavall Mallorca, to enjoy tonight's Mid-Summer BBQ. Although this spectacular event will feature delicious food as well as an unforgettable view of the jewel-toned Bay of Palma, we're certain tomorrow's last day of racing will be the most talked-about topic.

Connect with us through Twitter #SuperyachtCup or Facebook for real time updates of all the action on and off the racecourse and / or stay up to speed by following the race live via TracTrac. 

For high-res images contact Claire Matches at mail@clairematches.com

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Fri, 23 June 2017