Super reliable breezes refresh the perfect 42nd Copa del Rey MAPFRE recipe
30 July 2024 - Palma, Mallorca, Spain - The ever reliable Bay of Palma winds came in on cue to deliver the perfect opening races at the 42nd edition of the Copa del Rey MAPFRE, the jewel in the crown of Mediterranean regattas. The curtain raiser saw a gentle, shifty 8-9kts breeze which tested the afterguard skills of the 79 boats across the six classes that raced today.
As the summer thermal effects came in stronger for the second race teamwork was challenged more in the sparkling conditions. And of course the steady 15kts, proved a sporty reminder of Copa de Rey’s ever popular recipe: sunshine, seabreezes, close racing and a great atmosphere before and after racing at the Real Club Náutico de Palma.
King takes first blood
The King of Spain, Felipe VI, and the crew of the Spanish Navy’s TP52 Aifos, started with a victory in the six-strong Watches of Switzerland ORC Class 0 which includes four TP52s. But Spanish rival Javier Banderas sailing Teatro Soho Altavista which is new to them and was previously a Bribon which would have been sailed at previous Copa del Reys by Felipe’s father – won the second race, and after being second to Aifos in the first race leads the premier ORC big boat division.
Luis Doreste, double Olympic gold medal-winning tactician at Teatro del Soho Altavista, said, "This will be no cakewalk, don’t be mistaken, this class has a very high level this year. But today, we had the good fortune (or skill) to be in the right place on the race course, and that made things a lot easier for us. We still have to get to grips with some details of the (new) boat, and I particularly feel more comfortable on this boat in strong winds than in light winds.”
In Odilo ORC 1 class, the biggest at the regatta, it is the well-sailed Estonian ClubSwan 42 Katariina II of Aivar Tuulberg, with Italian 2000 Olympian Lorenzo Bodino calling the tactics onboard, leads courtesy of their 1.3 today.
𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗢𝗥𝗖 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀
𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝘄𝗶𝘁𝘇𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗢𝗥𝗖 𝟬
Teatro Soho Altavista Global Group | Javier Banderas y Toni Guiu (TP52) - today 2,1
𝗢𝗱𝗶𝗹𝗼 𝗢𝗥𝗖 𝟭
Katariina II | Aivar Tuulberg (Swan 42 Club) - today 1,3
𝗔𝗹𝘁𝗮𝘃𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮 𝗢𝗥𝗖 𝟮
L´immens Laplaza Assessors | Carles Rodríguez (Sinergia 40 mod) - today 4,1
𝗕𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮 𝗢𝗥𝗖 𝟯
Meerblick | Gaby Pohlmann (Cape 31) - today 1,1
All the ORC classes race a coastal race on Wednesday.
