52 Super Series 2015 - Azzurra finally shines

by Azzurra Sailing Team on 22 May 2015 52 Super Series 2015 – Azzurra won the first race of the day with a perfect performance. The following two races saw her falter but regain positions with an excellent performance after a pre-start penalty. After racing tomorrow Azzurra’s official christening will be held by the famous Veles e Vents building.

Azzurra’s day couldn’t have gotten off to a better start with a win in the first of today’s three races. Valencia’s thermal breezes picked up as expected at 1:00 PM, and the brand-new Azzurra got her first win in the 52 Super Series 2015 when the Commodore of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, Riccardo Bonadeo, was aboard.

Riccardo Bonadeo had these words after the race: “Yachting is the sport that I’m most passionate about, sailing aboard a performance racer with a team of excellent sailors is a truly magnificent experience. And when the winning boat’s name is Azzurra… it’s absolute perfection! Today’s race was won thanks to Vasco Vascotto’s excellent tactical choices, Guillermo Parada’s skill at the helm and to the team’s agility in maneuvering. My sincere thanks and compliments go out to all, especially to our friends and Azzurra’s owners, the Roemmers who have yet again created a highly competitive boat.”

The following two races saw Azzurra finish eighth and fifth after an excellent performance regaining positions. After a pre-starting penalty, the final race saw Azzurra sailing at her best, even better than she sailed in the race she won.

The Ford Vignale Valencia Sailing Week saw Alegre bump Ran out of first place overall today while Bronenosec is now in third place overall after a first place finish. Azzurra and Sled are tied for points in fourth place.

Tomorrow, May 22nd, after racing is over the new Azzurra will be officially christened in the presence of her owners and top board members of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. Azzurra has been the YCCS’s sporting symbol since 1983, year of Italy’s first America’s Cup challenge.

Quotes of the day:

Skipper Guillermo Parada: “It’s always very nice to get our first official win of the series especially when we have all of our family, the Roemmers plus Commodore Bonadeo from the YCCS, here with us. In the following races there were a lot of ups and downs. I didn’t manage to put the boat in line properly, but the whole fleet was changing places constantly. We’re still fighting but I think that a place on the podium is still very achievable. We’re looking to improve every little detail and to gain positions in the last few days of this event.”

Tactician Vasco Vascotto: “There are twelve teams on the water and all of them are full of champion sailors so in the course of the season it’s only natural that sometimes they’ll be at the top and sometimes not. The previous leader got seven points in four races, but today they got a tenth place finish too. As far as we’re concerned, we’re happy with our win but we also know that we’re not sailing up to our full capacity, we’re making some mistakes and we have to learn from them so that we don’t repeat them. That said, I think that to win this season we’ll need a median placement of fourth. We’re a united team and that’s our real strength and I think we’re heading in the right direction.”

As always, you can follow the regattas in real time via Virtual Eye on our website. News direct from the regatta course will be posted on Azzurra’s Facebook page and Twitter account. Registered journalists can find copyright-free high res images for publication in the press area of the website.

Overall after seven races

1. Alegre(1-3-1-5-2-9-2),23p.

2. RánRacing(2-1-2-2-10-5-7),29p.

3. Bronenosec(8-6-6-1-9-6-1),37p.

4. Sled(7-11-3-3-3-1-11),39p.

4. Azzurra(6-5-5-9-1-8-5),39p.

6. Provezza(5-2-7-8-8-7-6),43 p.

7. Quantum(4-7-8-6-6-11-3),45p.

8. Platoon(3-8-11-4-7-2-12),47 p.

9. Interlodge(10-4-4-10-11-12-4),55 p.

10.Paprec (9-10-12-12-4-3),59p.

11.Gladiator(11-9-9-7-12-4-10),62 p.

12.Xio(12-12-10-11-5-10-8),68p.

2015 Calendar 52 Super Series
18 to 23 May: Valencia (Spain)
8 to 13 June: Porto Cervo (Italy, Sardinia)
13 to 18 July: Puerto Portals (Spain, Mallorca)
3 to 8 August: Palma de Mallorca (Spain)
15 to 20 September: Cascais (Portugal)