St Barth Cata Cup - Two Canadian teams to compete

by Dominique Ladouceur on 21 Oct 2014

St Barth Cata Cup 2012 - Maxime Loiselle and Louis Philippe Pierrick Contin http://www.pierrickcontin.fr/

In a little less than one month, Saint Barthélémy will host the seventh edition of the St. Barth Cata Cup, which will take place from November 19 to 23 in St. Jean bay. Keen fans of regatta, Maxime Loiselle, Anthony Boueilh and Olivier Pilon will meet top multihull racers like World Champions Billy Besson and Marie Riou, America’s Cup champion Thierry Fouchier, Swedish champion Leff Dahl and the winner of the last edition Franck Cammas.

The two Canadian teams are part of a long list of high-level racers who registered for the St. Barth Cata Cup in just a few days. 'Our event sparks wild enthusiasm among racers all over the world. Although our event is intended to be a friendly competition, the fact remains that the sailors like to take part in a high-calibre race,' explained Vincent Jordil, creator of the St. Barth Cata Cup.

Maxime Loiselle will team up with Anthony Boueilh for the seventh edition of the popular regatta while Olivier Pilon will compete with Alberto Torne Munoz, from Spain. This will be Maxime’s third time at the Cata Cup.

'This event is a great opportunity to race against the best in the sport. It allows me to refine my technique, to see firsthand how teams progress and to readjust my preparation,' explains Maxime Loiselle. 'For Quebecers and even Canadians, it is not every day that we get the chance to race against International level catsailors like Billy Besson, Franck Cammas, Thierry Fouchier and Leff Dahl. Usually, we only see them during World Championships or other International races.'

Although the quadruple Canadian Champion in F18 has had to write off his chance to participate in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, Maxime Loiselle has nevertheless set his sight on 2020. 'Sailing is somewhat the poor child of the Olympics here in Canada. We have to invest a great deal of time and energy to reach the same levels as European and American catsailors. But I am hopeful to represent my country at the 2020 Olympics.'

Year after year, organizers receive a growing number of pre-registrations for the St. Barth Cata Cup, and the quality of competitors is also increasing. 'We’ve been getting about 100 pre-registrations for the past two or three years. The sailors are so determined to secure a spot that we even have cases of double registrations,' said Hélène Guilbaud, the event’s organizer.

Although the organizers’ initial intention was to provide sailors at all levels a chance to enjoy the scenic beauty of the island, they also wanted to attract top competitors in the sailing world. Amateurs will therefore be able to rub shoulders with international luminaries like the Boulogne brothers. The total number of teams includes 10 from St. Barth, three from Saint-Martin, six from Martinique/Guadeloupe, 14 from France, eight from the United States and a few from Canada, Italy, Belgium, Sweden, Germany and Spain.