Yachting is one of the premier sporting events that Rolex sponsors each year. There are more than 20 events all over the world from January through December 2008 that bears the Rolex seal of sponsorship.

MERCENARIO 4, Skipper: Luis Silva at Vuelta Gorriti, Punta del Este

2008 Circuito Atlantico Sur Rolex Cup © ROLEX/Daniel Forster

In January, the yachting world’s attention was in North and South America. The year began with the Circuito Atlántico Sur Rolex Cup in the seas of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Punta del Este, Uruguay, from January 14 to 20. It was followed by the Rolex Miami OCR in Florida, USA, from January 27 to February 2.

February also had another event - the Offshore Race Rolex Buenos Aires-Rio de Janeiro. It was staged in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from February 9 to 21.

Then it was off to Asia for the Rolex China Sea Race from March 20 to 24. Modern yachts sailed in Hong Kong and the Philippines during the race. Yachting enthusiasts then made their way to St. Thomas, US Virgin Island for the International Rolex Regatta from March 28 to 30.

The second half of the year featured five events, four of which were held in Europe. The lone US-held event was the Rolex Farr 40 World Championship in Miami, Florida, from April 11 to 19.

Europeans had four regattas - the Rolex Capri Sailing Week in Capri, Italy, from May 20 to 24; the Giraglia Rolex Cup in St. Tropez, France, and Genoa, Italy from June 8 to 14; followed by the Sardinia Rolex Cup in Porto Cervo, Sardinia, also in Italy from June 16 - 21, 2008. The Rolex Commodores’ Cup in Cowes, Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom completed the list. The regatta was held from June 29 to July 6.

The month of July was indeed hectic for the yachting world with four events in three continents. The Rolex Ilhabela Sailing Week was held in Ilhabela, São Paulo, Brazil, from July 5 to 12, followed by the Trofeo S.M. La Reina Rolex Cup in Valencia, Spain, from July 11 to 13. Then it was back to North America for the New York Yacht Club Race Week at Newport Presented by Rolex in Newport, Rhode Island, from July 19 to 27 and the Rolex US-IRC National Championship in Harbor Springs, Michigan, from July 25 to 27.

The Rolex Baltic Week in Travemünde, Germany, was the lone Rolex yachting event in August (from August 26 to 31), then a flurry of races followed in September.

Porto Cervo, Sardinia in Italy hosted two events - the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup from September 1 to 6 and the Rolex Swan Cup from September 8 to 14. Then it was off to San Francisco, California, for the Rolex Big Boat Series from September 11 to 14.

The last quarter of the year will only see a few events - the Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez held in Saint-Tropez, France, from September 27 to October 4 and the Rolex Middle Sea Race to be held in Valletta, Malta, from October 15 to 25.

There is no major Rolex yachting event for the month of November. However, it is in this month that the ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards will take place in Madrid, Spain.

The last event of the yachting year, which will run through 2009, is the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race in Sydney, Australia. It is scheduled to begin on December 26 and will end in January 1, 2009. What a way to start a new year!

For the list of winners and images of the aforementioned events, visit www.regattanews.com.

St. Tropez, 29/09/08 Les Voiles de St. Tropez, 2008 Les Voiles de St. Tropez
Photo:© ROLEX/Carlo Borlenghi

This entry was posted on Monday, October 6th, 2008 at 11:19 am and is filed under Rolex Culture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.