10 days until the Atlantic Cup Race start

by Julianna Barbieri 16 May 09:33 PDT 26 May 2018

Atlantic Cup © Atlantic Cup

11 teams representing nine countries will start the 2018 Atlantic Cup at the Charleston Maritime Center, May 26.

With over 1,000nm of ocean racing, the Atlantic Cup is the longest offshore race in the Western Atlantic and is also the United States' only short-handed offshore race dedicated to the Class40.

Since its inception, the Atlantic Cup has been the U.S.' most environmentally responsible sailing race and is the first sports event in the U.S. to be ISO 20121 compliant. In addition, 1200+ school children are scheduled to visit the boats, meet the teams and learn about ocean health during the three stop-overs.

The 2018 Atlantic Cup will start in Charleston, S.C., May 26, stop in New York City (teams will be based at Liberty Landing Marina in New Jersey) May 29 -June 2 and culminate in Portland, Maine, June 4-10. The race is free and open to the public.

11 teams representing nine countries, including:

Fred Strammer, 2013 Miami World Cup Champion in 49er class, Collegiate All-American at Brown University
Mike Hennessy and Rob Windsor, only two sailors to have competed in every edition of the Atlantic Cup
Tristan Mouligne, Newport, RI resident, College of Charleston Alumni, competing in the Cup for the fourth time
Pietro Luciani, decorated Italian Class40 sailor, finishing sixth in the 2017 Transat Jacques Vabre
Jonathan Green, Boston based sailor who won the 2013 OSTAR
Jose Caldas, Angolan sailor who learned to sail after fleeing his country due to civil war for Brazil in 1986
Paul Peggs, Current Round Britain and Ireland record holder, set in 2014

Manuka Sports Event Management Co-Founder and Atlantic Cup Race Director, Hugh Piggin, said, "We couldn't be more excited to bring such a high quality fleet of shorthanded sailors to compete in what is America's toughest ocean race! With seasoned European programs, veteran US entries and new teams coming up, it really does prove that shorthanded sailing in the United States is in one of it's strongest positions to date. It'll be fascinating to see how these teams deal with the weather and navigational challenges this unique race course throws at them."

For more information on the Atlantic Cup please visit www.atlanticcup.org.