Barcolana presented by Generali: Way of life wins with Gasper Vincec

Way of life wins - Barcolana 51 © Studio Borlenghi

Way of Life, owned by the Slovenian shipowner Gašper Vincec, wins Barcolana51 presented by Generali in 1h54'10''. The boat beat an epic calm sea and all the competitors who had been tipped to win on the eve of Barcolana, thanks to an outstanding set-off and to the accurate selection of the stern sail. The crew decided to use a small winseeker instead of a big code zero, in order to take advantage of any puff of wind and get closer to the first mark.

The second place was unexpectedly scored by Shining, the ultralight hull owned by Milos Radonjic, followed by the RC44 Scorpio of Iztok Krumpak. This podium was completely unexpected and made up of Adriatic light boats, which benefited from the non-existent wind: Adriatic Europa came fourth with Dusan Puh and Fanatic of Alex Peresson fifth. Arca SGR, the 100-feet hull of the Benussi brothers, scored a sixth place, the women's crew of Golfo di Trieste captained by Francesca Clapcich came eighth, behind Barraonda (provvidenti-Ferluga), whereas Portopiccolo Tempus Fugit with Mitja Kosmina came ninth.

Known in the Gulf under the name of Maxi Jena, Way of Life won the regatta in 2009 and scored a second place in several editions: today, the boat has raced an excellent regatta with no wind, steadily sailing at a maximum speed of 3 knots. Gašper Vincec, Finn class Olympic champion (Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008) was at the helm and accurately replaced, according to the different speed, by Zan Luka Zelko, a young promising Slovenian sailor who has already qualified in Laser class in the Tokyo Olympics, and by the Slovenian "super coach" Neno Viali, sporting "dad" of many champions. The Slovenian cycling champion Primož Roglic, winner of the Vuelta race, was aboard Way of Life too, during this epic victory that was build meter after meter.

"What a beautiful day, Barcolana is a never-ending surprise - commented SVBG chairman Mitja Gialuz -the largest boats couldn't sail at their best with no wind and an outsider won, setting off with the right sail and sailing at a very fast pace without slowing down, and staying upright. A beautiful and crowded Barcolana: the images that will be in my heart are those of the fleet of sailors bathing, or playing the guitar, or waving happily despite the slow race, excited to be racing Barcolana. The lightest and under sail boats were the luckiest ones as they benefited from no wind conditions and gave us an unexpected podium. The good thing about our event is that there's no predicted winner and that the regatta is anticipated by a pre-tactical phase and suspence.But, beyond doubt, the best thing about Barcolana is the striking participation of the city and the community on land, which this year almost outnumbered that of the 50th edition. We also won another bet: Barcolana Village in Piazza Unità was a great success, with lots of visitors especially during the weekend."

The event's testimonial Dee Caffari stated: "Barcolana 51 was extraordinary, crazy, fabulous, so many boats! But the wind was very light and we didn't finish the course, so I have to come back next year."

The Race Committee decided to reduce the race course and place the finish line at the second Mark due to the lack of wind which only reached a peak of 3 knots. So at 5.00 pm the finish line was crossed by those boats and crews that managed to defeat the dead calm sea, also because they wanted to know who would rank last. They were all welcomed by a festive city.

"Barcolana always offers a new experience: it is a festival of sport and of the community - stated Generali chairman Gabriele Galateri di Genola - the fleet of 2000 boats and the seafront packed with enthusiasts is the best comment that can be made about the success of this event". Galateri has sailed aboard the Swan 90 Woodpeaker Cube together with Barcolana's testimonial Dee Caffari and the Generali Board members. The company, presenting sponsor of the regatta, has been supporting the event for over 40 years.

The Protagonists

Gašper Vincec, The winner - "This boat in these wind conditions is really fast. We started off really well, I even heard some clapping from nearby boats, they made me feel at home. The wind was blowing towards us from the first mark and we were lucky, we developed our own tactic and we have been the fastest. After the World Championship in Sardinia we now have a close-knit team with ten Olympic athletes. We know how to sail and we know that with this wind you need to choose the right sails, that's why we immediately decided to hoist a stay sail. That's when we understood we could make it and we have proudly placed our bow ahead of everybody else".

Milos Radojic, Shining - "I am really excited about today's unexpected success which we had hoped for and really wanted after so much training over the past months. The choice of setting off nearer Miramare only seemed to pay off after we had passed the first half of the first leg and that's why at the beginning we never thought the final outcome of our race would be so great. Shining is the fourth boat we sail on together and we have all known each other since we were kids, so we started sailing together in the Olympic. Among our friends there was also Peter Podunavac, sailor, sailmaker and greater expert of the Gulf of Trieste".

Furio Benussi, ARCA SGR - "We were about to secure the title, we tried our best, putting all of our abilities into action in very complicated wind conditions for out 100-footer. We have achieved the bare minimum in a regatta where we couldn't have asked more of our boat along a course that was, rightly, reduced to two legs to allow all boats to cross the finish line. There wasn't much we could tactically make up. It's the end of a wonderful three-year period at sea, though not so much on land, but I am at peace with myself because I know what our future with Arca SGR will be. The boat has great potential, which can be developed through hours of navigation, training and regattas which will surely include next year's Barcolana. I am proud of this team whom I would like to thank once again for the intensive work they have done in the last three months to rebuild and put back at sea a boat that had been completely abandoned and that now represents the near future of our crew. A personal thank you and on behalf of the Team also goes to all of our partners who support us and to Once Ocean Foundation which we proudly represent".

Francesca Clapcich, Skipper of Golfo di Trieste - She stated at the end of the regatta: "Barcolana is a great festival for Trieste and it has been a great party for us too. This was the first regatta that the team has raced aboard Golfo di Trieste, so we certainly didn't know the boat that well, but it has been the first step for future projects which we are in the making. Weather conditions this year have definitely been challenging, with very light wind, almost non-existent, but this is true for everyone. At the start we may have positioned our boat too early and as the cannon was fired we failed to accelerate. Our speed was sometimes good and sometimes bad. But we are pleased to have ranked among the first ten in the overall ranking. Besides our result, I think and hope that we have shown the professionalism of 21 women sailors, each with their own specific role who knows what to do and whose experience greatly contributes to our common growth".

Rai has been all about sea and sails - For ten days RAI, Barcolana's Main Media partner, has been the 'official voice' of sailing and Trieste's regatta in the Gulf of Trieste. The cameras of Rai Sport, Rai News24 and local news channel Tgr Friuli Venezia Giulia have broadcast the race live with its fleet of 2000 boats filling up the race course. The event has also been fully broadcast on Rai Radio 1 with live coverage of the regatta by Germana Brizzolari on 'Domenica Sport' with interviews and debates. All local news channels were also present to broadcast the event that has attracted over 250,000 thousand spectators to Trieste. At the same time the Rai Radio2 live programme, 'Tutti Nudi', has brought great vibes to the city thanks to the energy of Pippo Lorusso, Antonio Mezzancella and Dj Osso.

First 20 boats to crossed the finish line:

1 Way of Life - Sailing Planet
2 MM Shining
3 Scorpio - JK Izola
4 Adriatic Europa Valicelli - JK Piranski Zaliv
5 Fanatic - S.T Sport del Mare
6 Arca SGR - Società Velica di Barcola e Grignano
7 Barraonda Confartiginato FVG - Società Velica Oscar 8 Cosulich
8 Golfo di Trieste - Società Nautica Pietas Julia
9 Portopiccolo Tempus Fugit - Yacht Club Portopiccolo
10 Cleansport one - Cartubi
11 Idrusa Calvi Network - Circolo Vela Brindisi
12 Anywave - Safilens - Diporto Nautico Sistiana
13 Pegaso - LNI Sezione Vela La Spezia
14 Furiosa 2
15 Ancilla Domini - Yacht Club Adriaco
16 Riedl Aerospace -
17 Green Dragon - SCTWV
18 Brava - GDV LNI Monfalcone
19 The Big Wave - CV Toscolano Moderno
20 W Medeleine - Società Velica Oscar Cosulich

Barcolana51 presented By Generali: A crew of Serbian, Montenegrin and Italian Dentists was the last to arrive, aboard the 50-feet Xeinos

The last boat to cross the finish line of the Barcolana Regatta presented by Generali is a crew made up of Serbian, Montenegrin and Italian (from Brianza) dentists. The team reached the finish line a few seconds before 6.00 pm and was welcomed by Mitja Gialuz, the chairman of sailing club Società Velica di Barcola e Grignano, and Dean Bassi, Barcolana's internationalization manager. The chairman reached the finish line to celebrate the last boat to arrive aboard a dinghy and to award it with the trophy that was presented a few days ago, matching with the event's original spirit.

Gialuz said: "It was a great pleasure to celebrate the last boat to cross the finish line. The atmosphere aboard was fantastic and we shared a beautiful moment with great passion for sport and the sea."