10th anniversary Normandy Channel Race to be held in 2019

2018 Normandy Channel Race © Jean-Marie Liot / NCR2018

The 2019 edition of the Normandy Channel Race, which starts on Sunday 19 May, will mark the 10th anniversary of the event that first set sail in the spring of 2010 from Caen.

Created by Sirius Evenements with the support of the local authorities (City of Caen – Urban Community Caen la Mer – Calvados department – Normandy region) and the CCI Normandie, the event has only been able to go from strength to strength thanks to the remarkable and constant commitment from these five partners, who have been present throughout.

On a competitive level, the race quickly became a reference Class40 event, offering up one week and 1,000 miles of tough competition spanning a course that is as appealing as it is difficult in the English Channel and the Celtic Sea.

350 entries, 194 different skippers of 16 nationalities have participated in the event since 2010. Its powerful image and adventure format on both a sporting and a human level have made the event a big hit and guaranteed its development.

In this way, the "Normandy" as the race is known, has really made a niche for itself in the region of Normandy, raising the nautical profile of the area and taking on the label of its main annual offshore race event, whilst developing its economic sector in boating. At the heart of Caen, the event has become an increasingly popular meeting in its central location in the Bassin Saint-Pierre.

The anniversary will be rightly celebrated with a variety of events set to be announced in early 2019.

An ever stronger Class40

Having opted exclusively for the Class40 since the Normandy Channel Race was created has undoubtedly contributed to the development of the class by proposing a major annual meeting. Its line-up has been increasing constantly, rising from 10 in 2010 to a record 27 entries in 2016 and 2018.

The last Route du Rhum with its 53 competitors in Class40 demonstrated the craft's central role in offshore racing. Indeed, considered for a long while to be the 'petite' class in the 'major' races, the Class40 has changed status in recent years, attracting racers with hefty track records and becoming a key part of major events, as well as gradually developing its own races.

Added to this, its technological development means that it has no cause to be jealous of the larger craft, the Class40s regularly completing a transatlantic race before the older generation 60-footers.

Enjoying the best mix of professionals and amateurs, the series is also by far the most international and has the largest female contingent.

An original 2019 edition

With just 6'' separating winner Phil Sharp and second-placed Louis Duc at the finish after one week of racing, the script for the 2018 proved to be yet another blockbuster. Equally, on a media level, for the very first time there was comprehensive image coverage throughout the event with a daily round-up in cooperation with France 3 Normandie. The presence of the Russian tall ship Shtandart also reeled in the visitors.

Adopting its classic route once again in the English Channel and the Celtic Sea – never quite the same nor completely different as the French poet Verlaine once wrote – the Normandy Channel Race 2019 will again offer up a double-handed sporting and human challenge spanning 1,000 miles and nearly one week.

It is an event that builds its history in the style of major classics, yet each and every time it offers its participants and its audience an original adventure both on land and at sea.

Will the double champion of the event (2017 – 2018), Briton Phil Sharp, who was also second in the latest Route du Rhum, choose to defend his title? Answer early in the new year.

Notice of Race 2019 published today and registration open on normandy-race.com.

Don't miss the wonderful 2018 round-up of the event in the stunning 6' film