The 72nd edition of the Loro Piana Giraglia kicked off this morning in Saint-Tropez. A total of 139 boats hit the water: 29 Maxis competed on the Pampelonne course, while the rest sailed a coastal course in the Gulf of Saint-Tropez.
Spectacular conditions welcomed the competitors, with a beautiful sunny day, a South/Southwesterly breeze between 9 and 14 knots, and slight seas on the Maxi course. Conditions were lighter for the remaining fleets. The Maxis completed two windward-leeward races of approximately 1.8 nautical miles, while the IRC/ORC fleets sailed coastal races—8 nm for the smaller boats and 11 nm for the larger ones.
Among the Maxi A fleet, the Wally 100 V and the Maxi 72 Jethou immediately began trading blows, crossing the finish line alternately and ending the day tied at 3 points. With V winning the final race of the day, she currently leads the provisional standings. In the Maxi B group, Jean Pierre Barjon’s Botin 69 Spirit of Lorina tops the leaderboard.
On the IRC/ORC coastal racecourse, first to finish in real time was the TP52 of Sailing Team Arkas, with tactician Martin Watts, who shared his thoughts at the finish line:
“We had a tricky start but pulled it back by the first mark, and from there the team sailed really well. The course suited us nicely as a 52-footer—tight reaching and good Code Zero legs played to our strengths. We were right on pace with the top boats and executed all the manoeuvres cleanly.
The end result didn’t quite go our way in the end though we were the first boat to cross the finish line, likely due to the breeze shutting down for us while the boats behind sailed in better pressure, which you can see reflected in the corrected times. That’s just part of racing under handicap, though. Overall, a solid performance and a really pleasing day for the team!”
In the IRC division, the ultra-fast Cape 31 Give Me Five, skippered by Adrien Follin, currently leads on corrected time, while Flying Dolphin, helmed by Willem Ellemet, tops the IRC 2 group.
In ORC, a standout performance came from Alberto Magnani’s Swan 45 Tenghér, who won the day, along with Farfallina 3, skippered by Davide Noli, in the ORC 2 group.
Back in port, all participants gathered at the Loro Piana Giraglia Village, where the day’s prize-giving and a lively happy hour took place until 8 p.m. Racing resumes tomorrow at 10:00 a.m., with a forecast of sustained Mistral winds promising an exciting day at sea.
The Organization
The Giraglia was conceived in 1953 as a 241-nautical-mile offshore race. In 2023, this classic regatta celebrated its 70th anniversary. The Loro Piana Giraglia is organised by the Yacht Club Italiano in collaboration with the Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez, under the patronage of the Yacht Club de France, Yacht Club Sanremo, Yacht Club de Monaco, the Union Nationale pour la Course au Large (UNCL), the International Maxi Association (IMA), and the cities of Saint-Tropez, Genoa, and the Liguria Region.
The Giraglia Race is a valid race for the IRC-UNCL Mediterranean Championship and is part of the 2025 Mediterranean Maxi Offshore Challenge, which IMA organises.
For comprehensive and up-to-date information on the Loro Piana Giraglia 2025, please visit the official website: www.loropianagiraglia.com
@yachtclubitaliano
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