WMRT - Switzerland’s leading professional regatta cancelled

by Bernard Schopfer on 25 Feb 2013 St. Moritz Match Race 2013, one of the stages of the Alpari World Match Racing Tour (WMRT), was to be hosted by Segel-Club St. Moritz from 27th August to 1st September. Today it was announced that Switzerland’s leading professional regatta has been cancelled due to insufficient funding. Founded in 2003 by the late Roni Pieper in the wake of Alinghi’s first America’s Cup victory, the St. Moritz Match Race quickly became one of the trademark stages of the WMRT.

During its 10 years on the international sailing calendar, the St. Moritz Match Race drew some of the greatest champions of the sport, among them Ed Baird, Mathieu Richard, Peter Gilmour and Ian Williams. The event made it possible for the best Swiss teams, such as the Monnin brothers (3rd in 2007), to compete with the world’s elite and for promising young talent, such as the team from the Geneva Regatta Training Centre, to measure their standard and improve over the years.

'We are very sad to have to make this decision,' said Beryl Pieper, president of the St. Moritz Match Race organising committee. 'We sincerely hope to be back in 2014 with a new elite international event for our beautiful region of Engadin. The St. Moritz Match Race had become a favourite among the international fleet of champions racing the World Match Tour each year, both for the hospitality and the quality of the racing. This event allowed us to put St. Moritz and Engadin on the international sailing WMRT website