Porto Cervo, 9 June 2007

Nerone takes the title at the Rolex farr 40 European Championship in Porto cervo

Porto Cervo, Italy. 9th June 2007. The Rolex Farr 40 European Championship Rolex, organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and taking place within the Rolex Settimana delle Bocche, concluded today with an all-Italian battle between Massimo Mezzaroma’s Nerone (ITA) and Vincenzo Onorato’s Mascalzone Latino (ITA). In the end everything hung on the final race of the event after four days of incredibly competitive racing in which judging the frequent wind shifts and getting the tactical decisions right were crucial. Each day brought different surprises as hot favourites came in at the back of the fleet and unknown teams excelled, only for everything to be turned on its head in the next race: each of the eleven races run was in fact won by a different boat.

Going into today’s final day of racing Mascalzone Latino, 2006 World and European Champion led Nerone, also a former Farr 40 World champion by just seven points in the overall classification. After the first race of today’s two possible races and heading into the final Nerone had sneaked into the lead overall by just one point leaving both Italian teams with all to play for. Nerone went on to take victory in the final race of the series and clinch the overall title.

According to Mezzaroma, success is all down to teamwork: “The most important thing of all is the crew, when you’re putting a team together the human aspect is the key: it’s almost like a marriage, there is no point having the best athletes and the best technicians if they can’t work together, you have to spend hours and hours on a boat in the middle of the sea with these people. One thing I’m also really pleased about is that we won with a girl on the crew, I’m really happy that we have finally broken this taboo for Nerone. This is maybe the happiest time of my life, my son Pietro was born 20 days ago and I have just won the Europeans. We won the Worlds here in Porto Cervo in 2003 and we won the Europeans in 2002 and 2005 so it’s nice to back on top.”

In the first race of the day, the tenth of the series, Wolfgang Schaefer’s Struntje Light (GER), Carlo Alberini’s Calvi (ITA) and Eric Maris’ Twins (FRA) led the fleet for the entire duration to take first, second and third respectively. Nerone’s fourth place in this first race allowed them to leapfrog Mascalzone, who came in twelfth. Schaefer, President of the European Farr 40 fleet was delighted to have gained a first after a week of disappointing results which had left him with an average score of 17 points per race, but was even more pleased with the standard of racing in general.

“This event in Porto Cervo was the European Championship. It was the second event in the European circuit and I must say it was a great event, the level was extraordinary, it was very high. I personally believe it was higher than previous years and that is not only because we have the Worlds in August in northern Europe. The guys are becoming better and better, which is an excellent thing. You can see that in the results because in one race you can have the first and it is very easy to be last in the next race. Everything is completely mixed up and that is a good sign. It is one reason why so many are sailing this class.”

The final race of the event saw Stratis Andreadis’ Atalanti XI (GRE), with Olympic medallist Sofia Bekatorou calling tactics, lead the fleet around the course followed, at the first windward mark by Giovanni Maspero’s Joe Fly(ITA) and Stefano and Massimo Leoprati’s Kismet (ITA) with Nerone rounding in fifth place. On the leeward leg Nerone moved up to third place while the two leaders remained unchanged. Heading up the second windward leg Nerone continued to advance and rounded the mark ahead of Joe Fly and Lang Walker’s Kokomo (AUS) while Atalanti XI fell way back in the pack after a difficult rounding.

The final overall classification therefore sees Nerone take first place and the title of Farr 40 European Champion for the third time. Mascalzone Latino takes second place six points behind, and Kokomo comes in third.

Mascalzone Latino’s tactician Adrian Stead was pleased with his team’s performance overall:

“Today we had some good bits, we had some bad bits. We had a bit of a problem around the top mark there wasn’t much room and there wasn’t a lot of wind and there were a lot of boats. Vasco managed to find a gap through there and that was what made the difference in the first race really.
In the last race we started right beside Nerone and we thought we were over the line so we stopped and held back a little so Vasco got off to a good start. I think we were tenth around the mark and we got back up to seventh. We are really pleased with how it’s gone this week. If someone had said we’d come second in the Europeans with no practice and a new boat I’d have laughed. We definitely have a few bits and pieces to sort out on the new boat but the most important thing is the team, we’ve all worked really hard and the guys and girls on board have sailed really really well. Overall I’m really pleased.”

Jim Richardson, Farr 40 International Class president and owner of Barking Mad summed up the week’s racing “The competition this week has been very intense. It's been eleven races over four days in varying conditions and there are eleven different race winners coming from one of the very bottom end boats to the overall winner. It really sums up the spirit of the class that it is a level playing field for everybody and everyone has their shot. Nerone sailed very very well. They are excellent sailors and they were very consistent throughout the regatta. What wins in this class is consistency and when you are consistent you do well.”

For full results, entry list, photos and further information please visit www.yccs.it or www.regattanews.com.


YCCS Press Office
Jill Campbell

pressoffice@yccs.it
www.yccs.it