Yacht Club Costa Smeralda team first Italian crew at Baldwin Cup

YCCS Team, Newport Beach (LA, California) © YCCS

The Baldwin Cup 2018 will get underway in Newport Beach (LA, California) and for the first time in the history of this prestigious trophy an Italian team has been invited to participate.

A crew of eight representing the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, led by team captain Filippo Maria Molinari, are setting off with the support of Italian construction company Impresa Navarra - a long-time supporter of sailing.

The Baldwin Cup is a team racing event held each year in Californian waters aboard Harbour 20 craft: vessels that do not require a great deal of physical work from the bowmen, however numerous calculations are necessary to come up with the winning combinations.

Competition will take place on the waters of Newport Beach from 12 to 14 April, right in front of the Newport Harbour Yacht Club where crowds of enthusiastic supporters usually gather to cheer on the home teams.

The event formula sees four boats from each team compete against each other. The winning team is the one that racks up a total score of less than 17 points from the four competing boats (for example 2-3-4-5 wins, 1-6-7-8 loses).

The participating Yacht Club Costa Smeralda team is composed of: Filippo Maria Molinari (Team Captain), Filippo Maria Faruffini, Stefano Liguori, Antonio Sodo Migliori, Andrea Cinerari. Alfredo Ricci, chief umpire at the Baldwin Cup 2015 as well as numerous other international events, will support the team as coach and rules advisor.

Filippo Maria Molinari, team captain: "After years of training and practice in team racing, an Italian team has finally been invited to participate in one of the most prestigious international events in this challenging discipline."

The trip was made possible thanks to the support of Impresa Navarra which has been operating in the construction sector in Italy since 1920 and which has close links to the sailing world, supporting both teams and events.