London, UK (7th May 2015): The World Match Racing Tour has added two new events to its 2015/16 world championship schedule. ‘The Sails of White Nights’ held in St Petersburg, Russia and the Internationaux de France in Pornichet, France both join the professional sailing series as World Tour Events. The 2015/16 Tour now features 19 events including seven World Championship and 12 World Tour events under the new Tour format announced earlier this year.
Founded in 2006, ‘The Sails of White Nights’ (3-7 June 2015) is staged in the iconic City of St Petersburg with racing held on the Neva River directly in front of the world famous Winter Palace (The Hermitage). The venue offers a stadium atmosphere for spectators and VIP guests to watch the action close to the shore. This year, the event will also represent the 2015 EUROSAF Open Match Racing European Championship.
Event founder, Natalia Fedorova (RUS) said ‘It is a fantastic opportunity to be part of the World Match Racing Tour and also crown the European Champion. We look forward to welcoming the teams, officials and spectators to our spectacular venue in the heart of St Petersburg.’
The Sails of White Nights
Sails of the White Nights is staged in front of the iconic city of St Petersburg © Elina Razina
Also joining the 2015/16 Tour is the ‘Internationaux de France’ (29 July – 1 August), one of the long term ‘go to’ match racing events in Western Europe since 2002. Raced in Pornichet near Nantes in West France, the event will see twelve teams slug it out in July for World Championship points and the winner will become the French Match Racing champion. The event is supported by the cities of Nantes and Pornichet as well as Pays de la Loire region creating a summer festival for sailors and non-sailors alike.
Event director Jean-Pierre Cordonnier commented ‘The newly expanded schedule for the World Tour presents teams with a more clearly defined pathway to the pinnacle of match racing at a world class level. It will also bring greater exposure to our sponsors and partners being part of the World Championship series.”
World Match Racing Tour Executive Director James Pleasance added ‘We made a bold move this year to expand the Tour and the response has been outstanding. The new event and points format has provided a platform for match racers around the world to join the World Championship series, as well as the opportunity for the Tour to expand into new markets.”
For more information on The Sails of White Night, visit www.sailsofwhitenights.ru
For more information on the Internationaux de France, visit www.ifmr.fr
World Match Racing Tour 2015/16 Event Schedule:
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP EVENTS
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: 13 – 17 May 2015 Congressional Cup Long Beach, USA
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: 21 – 25 May 2015 Match Race Germany Langenargen, Germany
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: 29 June – 4 July 2015 Stena Match Cup Sweden Marstrand, Sweden
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: 29 July – 1 August 2015 Energa Sopot Match Race Sopot, Poland
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: 23 – 27 September 2015 Dutch Match Cup Lelystad, Netherlands
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: 6 – 11 October 2015 Argo Group Gold Cup Hamilton, Bermuda
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS: 26 – 30 January 2016 Monsoon Cup Malaysia Johor Bahru, Malaysia
WORLD TOUR EVENTS
WORLD TOUR: 8 – 10 May 2015 FICKER Cup Long Beach, USA
WORLD TOUR: 9 – 10 May 2015 VOLVO SPRING CUP Langedrag, Sweden
WORLD TOUR: 29 – 31 May 2015 Szczecin Match RAce Szczecin, Poland
WORLD TOUR: 3 – 7 June 2015 The Sails of White Nights St Petersburg, Russia
WORLD TOUR: 10 – 14 Jun 2015 Royal Southern Match Cup Hamble, United Kingdom
WORLD TOUR: 17 – 19 July 2015 Dziwnow Match Race Dziwnow, Poland
WORLD TOUR: 29 July – 1 August Internationaux de France Pornichet, France
WORLD TOUR: 21 – 23 August 2015 Dutch Match Cup Qualifier Lelystad, Netherlands
WORLD TOUR: 26 – 30 August 2015 KNICKERBOCKER CUP New York, USA
WORLD TOUR: Sepetember* BERMUDA MR CHAMPIONSHIP Hamilton, Bermuda
WORLD TOUR: November* Monsoon cup Terengganu Terengganu, Malaysia
WORLD TOUR: December* LIGA LAYAR SERIES Malaysia
* Dates to be advise
