19 October 2007

The European Championship will at the same time be the final series of the Farr 40 Northern European Circuit that is to start in Norway at the end of May. It will be followed by Kiel Week in the last week of June and a KDY regatta in the Danish waters off Copenhagen at the end of July, before the decisive races will be held in Travemuende. The regatta organizers from Norddeutscher Regatta Verein (NRV) Hamburg, Luebeck Yacht Club (LYC) and the international Farr 40 Class Association will stage a top-class Farr 40 event.

“We are pleased to have such a good response from the Farr 40 class, with whom we have been sharing a close friendship over the past years. The competing teams can look forward to highly exciting, yet fair races, and they will certainly enjoy the unique ambience at the Trave estuary,” said Peter Streit, the Managing Director of Rolex Germany in Cologne. Rolex has been the title sponsor of the Baltic Week from its first edition in 2004.

When the regatta calendar was published, Vincenzo Onorato from Italy did not take long to confirm his entry Mascalzone Latino. The two-times in a row Rolex Farr 40 World Champion and current title-holder wants to come to Travemuende by all means and make up for losing the European title at this year’s Rolex Settimana delle Bocche in Porto Cervo, Sardinia to his compatriot Massimo Mezzaroma with Nerone.

During his first Worlds victory in 2006, Onorato’s tactician had been the three-times America’s Cup winner Russell Coutts, while he had trusted this job this year to Adrian Stead (Great Britain). Due to a class rule Farr 40 yachts must be helmed by their amateur owners. Part of the crew, however, may be recruited from sailing professionals; therefore the class usually attracts spectacular names from the racing scene.

Regarding prominent entries, the Rolex Baltic Week organizers are looking forward to Nanoq’s participation, the Farr 40 of the Danish Crown Prince Frederik. He had won the final race of the 2007 Rolex Farr 40 World Championship in his country’s capital Copenhagen, which made him finish eighth in the competition and be the best Scandinavian boat. The Farr 40 owner promised to join the next Europeans, and therefore the next regatta date was placed after the 2008 Olympic Games in China, where his Royal Highness will represent his country as a guest of honour. The date also fits in well with the calendars of the overseas owners who may decide to come to Europe after the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds in mid-April in Miami, USA.

By winning the bid for the Rolex Farr 40 Europeans, the Rolex Baltic Week has once again secured a sailing highlight. So far the regatta event has already hosted the Dragon and the two IMS Worlds (600 and open), as well as the European Championships of the Olympic Star class and the international Melges 24 class.

The Farr 40 class gave its German debut at this year’s Rolex Baltic Week, when 13 yachts from seven countries including boats from overseas (USA and Australia) came to race in the fifth and final regatta of the European Circuit grand-prix series in Neustadt, Holstein. Jim Richardson (USA), the President of the international Farr 40 Class Association, gave the event much acclaim: “It was an excellent racing premiere for our class in Germany.” Richardson also won the 2007 Rolex Baltic Week and with this victory secured the overall win of the European Circuit with his yacht Barking Mad.

Class management representative Geoff Stagg visited the fourth Rolex Baltic Week last August. This year’s event has convinced him as to where the Rolex Farr 40 European Championship should go. The regatta course on the Bay of Neustadt will remain more or less in the same area. Eckart Reinke from Kiel has already been asked to act as Race Officer. The event venue in Travemuende, where the 119^th Travemuende Week will take place during the last week of July, boasts a number of advantages. Berthing space right at the event site and close to the race course, and nearby top hotels guarantee an ideal set-up. The historic square rigger Passat, maritime landmark at the Trave estuary and the life-style ambience of an up-scale seaside resort are more than suitable for hosting the Rolex Baltic Week.

“To cater for the varying interests of the Mediterranean and the North European sailors, we have decided to stage two racing series – one on the Baltic Sea and one in the Mediterranean – with the Europeans as their peak event”, explained Wolfgang Schaefer from Lueneburg, President of the European Farr 40 fleet that organizes the Farr 40 European Circuits. He will be racing himself with his Struntje light, and hopes to attract a first-class fleet to this European Championship premiere in the North. The four race days will start on Thursday, 28th August through Sunday, 31st August, when the overall winner will receive the European Championship trophy and an exclusive Rolex time-piece.

The Rolex Baltic Week is the only regatta in Germany which enjoys the support of Rolex. The worldwide calendar of the Rolex regattas comprises famous yachting events such as the Rolex Middle Sea Race, that will start on Saturday (20th October) in Malta, the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race at the end of December in Australia, as well as the Sardinia Rolex Cup and the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup in Porto Cervo in Sardinia, Italy among many other events in the following year.

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Andreas Kling

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Travemuende - 19 October 2007 11:52