Grand Soleil Cup 2024 and Grand Soleil Vintage Cup: two events for a week of passion for sailing

Grand Soleil Cup 2024 and Grand Soleil Vintage Cup: a week of races to celebrate their owners

There could be no better way to honor Grand Soleil owners than by dedicating an entire week of races and events to them, thus uniting the entire peninsula. And that’s exactly what happened in recent days, thanks to the two events organized by Cantiere del Pardo, held at opposite ends of Italy: in Porto Cervo and Portopiccolo. The Grand Soleil Cup 2024 was held in the waters of the iconic Sardinian location, while the Grand Soleil Vintage Cup took place off the coast of Friuli Venezia Giulia. Two highly anticipated, top-level events that involved over 70 boats and more than 600 sailors, all enthusiasts of this iconic Italian shipyard.

The Grand Soleil Cup 2024 in Porto Cervo

The twenty-second edition of the Grand Soleil Cup, organized this year in collaboration with the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, proved to be the ideal occasion to bring together Grand Soleil owners and celebrate the arrival of summer. The strong mistral wind, with constant gusts around 30 knots and peaks at 40, inevitably affected the races at sea, yet it couldn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the crews, who ensured the event’s success.

All owners and crews were welcomed on Friday evening with a cocktail on the panoramic terrace of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. Among the participants were the Grand Soleil 72 Performance “Pantarei 2” and “Shanti,” the new flagships of Cantiere del Pardo, as well as models that have marked the shipyard’s history, such as the Grand Soleil 42 “Gilda” designed by German Frers and the Grand Soleil 45 “Bucentaure 2” designed by the Judel/Vrolijk studio. Also in attendance were the Grand Soleil 40 and 44, respectively “Yankee R” and “Lazy Dog,” designed by Matteo Polli and Nauta Design.

Most of the fleet came from various regions of Italy, but there were also participants from Spain, France, the Principality of Monaco, and even Puerto Rico; in the latter case with the Grand Soleil 44 “Lazy Dog” owned by Sergio Sagramoso. Two representatives of the traditionally well-represented Adriatic fleet were also present: the GS 44 “Athirat” by Ugo Loeser from Trieste and the GS 43 “Seawolf” by Carlo Daniele from Rimini.

On Saturday, the first day the Grand Soleil fleet was supposed to sail in the La Maddalena Archipelago, the sailing committee was forced to cancel the outing. The wind was blowing at 28 knots, increasing to 35. As a result, the owners and their crews gathered on the quay, where they enjoyed a pasta party in Piazza Azzurra, fostering the sense of a “Grand Soleil family” united by the brand’s values of excellence. Saturday evening saw an elegant gala dinner held on the panoramic terrace of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda.

On Sunday, an attempt was made to run a short coastal course, sheltered from the Mistral wind, which would have seen the fleet head towards the Islands of Mortorio and Soffi, then leave them to port and sail towards the finish line positioned in front of the islets of Li Nibani. Unfortunately, once at sea, the weather conditions worsened, and the fleet had to return to the port, where they gathered again in Piazza Azzurra for the special awards ceremony.

The Grand Soleil 34 “Why Not” owned by Matteo Stella was awarded the Arsenale Trophy, designated for the boat with the most years of sailing; while the Grand Soleil 72 “Shanti,” owned by Flavio Piccolomini, received the Alba Trophy, dedicated to the most recently launched boat. The Latitudine Trophy, for the boat that traveled the farthest, was awarded to the Grand Soleil 44 “Athirat” owned by Ugo Loeser; finally, the Grand Soleil 46 “Le Vent Perdu,” owned by Sonia Capobianco and Bianca Maria Terraciano, won the Rosa dei Venti Trophy for the largest female crew.

“Despite the unfavorable weather, the Grand Soleil Cup once again proved to be an unmissable event – commented Gigi Servidati, President of Cantiere del Pardo – It was an honor and a pleasure to see so many owners and crews gathered in such a special setting as Costa Smeralda, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the participants and our partners who made it possible. We are already working on the 2025 edition”

The 2024 edition of the Grand Soleil Cup was sponsored by Quick Group and Volvo Penta, and also benefited from the support of important official partners such as B&G, Falconeri, and Garmin.

The Grand Soleil Vintage Cup in Portopiccolo

The Grand Soleil Vintage Cup, dedicated to boats designed before 2000 by Cantiere del Pardo, was luckier in terms of weather, enjoying two splendid days of ideal sunshine and breezes. On Saturday, the very light wind at the start, combined with an adverse current, challenged part of the fleet, splitting it into two groups. The first group managed to slip ahead and enter the area of higher pressure, while the second group had to struggle for a long time to get going. To give all the boats time to finish the race, the committee decided to shorten the course and close it at buoy number 3.

On Sunday, the start was on time, with a beautiful breeze stretching across the starting line and throughout the course. A thermal wind of 10-14 knots accompanied all the boats from start to finish, allowing for a perfect alignment on the starting line and creating several exciting duels right up to the finish line. There were even real “match races” under colorful spinnakers between competitors and boats of the same model.

The overall results saw the crew of the GS50 “Elca,” skippered by Carlo Naibo, triumph and take first place. The GS45 “Hic Sunt Leones” by Francesco Lazzaretto secured second place, while third place was obtained by Roberto Cabrini with his GS42 “Elisir.”

The Grand Soleil Vintage Cup wasn’t just about the races at sea. As per tradition, the festivities began on Friday evening with an opening aperitif, continued on Saturday evening with a dinner accompanied by nostalgic music, and culminated on Sunday evening with the awards ceremony and closing celebrations on the sea-view terrace of the Bris in Portopiccolo. The event was organized by BS Nautic in collaboration with the Yacht Club Portopiccolo and the Diporto Nautico Sistiana.