The Nautor’s Swan one designs will compete in the 36th Copa del Rey MAPFRE in three categories: ClubSwan 50, MRW Swan 45 and Swan 42. 25 boats from 12 nationalities will compete on the same stage, which hosted the first edition of the The Nations Trophy in October, a new format including the World Championships for all three classes.
Nautor’s Swan is one of the most prestigious boatyards in the world, and have close to half a century of experience in the design and manufacture of high-performance yachts uniquely combining style and quality. There are over 2000 exquisite Swans measuring between 36 and 131 feet (11 to 40 metres) throughout the world. Competition is hard-wired within their DNA, and the class boasts an interesting annual calendar of regattas in some of the best Yacht Clubs in the world.
The Real Club Náutico in Palma has won the trust of their boat owners,
“It is a real source of pride,” admits Vivi Mainemare, Sporting coordinator of the RCNP, “the boats are drawn here, attracted to the safety, climate, and the solid savoir-faire of the RCNP, as well as the extraordinary sailing conditions in the Bay of Palma.”
In the 36th Copa del Rey MAPFRE three Swan one design classes will be competing: the ClubSwan 50, MRW Swan 45 and Swan 42, an unrivalled situation in the nearly four decades of the event’s history.
“The Swan 45 and 42 are over ten years-old, and the ClubSwan 50 was officially launched this year. The first two are very classical, traditional yachts, although they have the one design character, the newer class is more aggressive and fun, and has been created to enjoy racing,” Mainemare concluded.
The biggest fleet of ClubSwan 50
To celebrate their Golden Anniversary in 2016, Nautor’s Swan commissioned Argentine designer Juan Kouyoumdjian to create a special boat, with a slightly sporting bias. The ClubSwan 50 was officially presented (the figure referring to the 50 feet length, and the 50-year anniversary it commemorated) in the previous edition of the Copa del Rey MAPFRE. The RCNP hosted their European début in May, during the Sail Racing PalmaVela regatta. The 36th Copa del Rey MAPFRE will be the third scoring regatta of the European season, and will present the greatest number of ClubSwan 50s ever seen; six from four nationalities, including the Swiss boat “Mathilde”, winner of Sail Racing PalmaVela.
Second edition of the MRW Swan 45
The Swan 45 is 45-feet long (13.8 metres), was designed in 2001, and recognised as a class in 2005. Its international fleet includes fifty boats, which regularly compete in regattas throughout the world, both as one design and under IRC rating. In last year’s edition of the Copa del Rey MAPFRE, the MRW Swan 45 participated as a class, demonstrating extraordinary equality, and intense racing, with the title literally decided in the tenth and last race of the competition. The 36th Copa del Rey MAPFRE is the third scoring race of the European Circuit for the 2017 class, and will host eight teams from six nationalities, including Christian Plump’s “Elena Nova”, the German team and World Champions in 2016.
First time for the Swan 42
The Swan 42 is a 42.6 feet (13 metres) one design, from the Nautor’s Swan boatyard, designed by Germán Frers, under commission from the New York Yacht Club. Competition is its true vocation, with eminently non-professional crews, competing both in coastal races as well as offshore. This year the class makes its début at the Copa del Rey MAPFRE, and will be the third scoring regatta of its European circuit in 2017. Ten boats will compete from five nationalities, including Javier Sanz’s “Red Eléctrica de España” a début in Swan 42, following two titles in the Copa del Rey MAPFRE in the X-35 category.
The MRW Swan 45 competition programme will include up to 12 windward-leeward races, whilst the ClubSwan 50 and Swan 42s are scheduled to compete in 11, and including a coastal race. The three classes will have their first scoring races on Monday, 31st July.
Back in October
The three fleets will return to the RCNP in October to celebrate the very first edition of The Nations Trophy, a bi-annual competition, held between nations which will also be the the ClubSwan 50s World Championships 2017, and European Championships for both the Swan 45 and the Swan 42s. Another nod of approval from Nautor’s Swan to their representative Mediterranean club.
The 36th Copa del Rey MAPFRE will be held between 29th July and 5th August. It is organised by the Real Club Náutico de Palma and the Real Federación Española de Vela (lit. Spanish Sailing Federation),and is sponsored by MAPFRE with the institutional collaboration of the Govern de les Illes Balears (Balearic Islands Regional Government), the Ayuntamiento de Palma (Palma Town Hall), the Autoritat Portuaria de Balears (Balearic Islands Port Authority) and the Federación Balear de Vela (Balearic Islands Sailing Federation).
