It has been 18 years since the Finn Gold Cup was last held in Cascais, Portugal. In 2007, Spain’s Rafa Trujillo clinched his only Finn Gold Cup win after a thrilling medal race off the beach following an epic week of racing. Then, it was part of the ISAF World Sailing Championships and was a key event leading up to the 2008 Olympic Games in Qingdao, China. 2025 marks the third time the Finn Gold Cup has been held in Cascais in 55 years.
The class held two European Championships here in 1958, won by Adelchi Pelaschiar from Italy, and in 1965, won by Bernd Dehmel of the then DDR. However, it was the Finn Gold Cups held here that are the stuff of legend. No one who was there can forget ‘Big Saturday’ at the 2007 Finn Gold Cup, one of the biggest days on the water for the Finn Class. Hardly anyone returned ashore unscathed after a day of huge waves and 30 knot winds. Those who participated in the Portuguese Nationals over the last three days got a taste for what that course area can deliver. It’s where the 2025 Finn Gold Cup will be run if conditions allow.
In 2007, the class thrived with names like Trujillo, Australia’s Anthony Nossiter, Britain’s Ed Wright, Pieter-Jan Postma from the Netherlands, Denmark’s Jonas Hoegh-Christensen, New Zealand’s Dan Slater and Emilios Papathanasiou from Greece. Many of these sailors still sail Finns when time allows, though none are here this week. However, one of the 160 sailors from 1970, Spain’s Gerardo Seeliger, is here this week.
The 1970 Finn Gold Cup in Cascais stands out in the class history, not only as the largest Finn Gold Cup ever, with 160 entries from 37 nations, but also for Brazilian legend Jörg Bruder, who won the first of his three world titles, a record that remained until Britain’s Ben Ainslie matched it in 2004 and then beat it in 2005.
To mark the occasion of the 2004 Finn Gold Cup in Brazil and to honour their sailing hero, the Brazilian Olympic Committee presented the Finn Class with the Jörg Bruder Finn Silver Cup, awarded today to the best U29 sailor in the Finn Gold Cup.
Bruder, who finished as runner-up twice before, feared that 1970 might be his last Gold Cup due to leg injuries. He needed to finish fifth or better in the last race to win the Cup, regardless of what Henry Sprague from the USA did. Despite match-race tactics used against him, Bruder managed to finish ahead of two boats, crossing the line seconds ahead of them, marking the most dramatic win in any Finn Gold Cup history.
Bruder defended his title in 1971 and 1972 but tragically died in 1973 while en route to defend his title for the third time. His legacy remains a prominent part of Finn Gold Cup discussions as the fleet of 88 Finn sailors from 20 nations prepares to compete for the 2025 Finn Gold Cup.
For more information about the event, visit the official event website.
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