Swan One Design World Championships at Scarlino, Tuscany - Overall
by Nautor's Swan 17 Oct 2020 20:18 PDT
13-20 October 2020
The Swan One Design Worlds, the racing component of this week's inaugural Swan Experience, concluded earlier today in Scarlino, Tuscany. The week's class winners have been confirmed. Marcus Brennecke's German yacht Hatari is the new ClubSwan 50 world champion. The Swan 45 worlds was claimed by Lennard van Oeveren's Dutch entry Motions. Competing for the Gold Cup, Cetilar-Vitamina was the triumphant ClubSwan 36. The same boats also claimed The Nations League 2020 prizes (calculated on combined Swan One Design Worlds and Swan Tuscany Challenge points).
The fickle conditions along the Tuscan seaboard created significant challenges for the Race Committee who despite providing the best possible opportunity for competition to take place had to make the pragmatic decision both yesterday and today that the breeze was not sufficiently stable or reliable for races to start.
Although the racing programme was significantly curtailed, owners and sailors appreciated the seismic efforts organizers made in ensuring safe competition was possible in the current climate. After a much-disrupted season, the event, attended by 26 yachts, provided a much welcome dose of camaraderie for the Swan family.
A 360 degreesview of the Swan World
The Swan Experience, held for this first time this week in the luxury setting of the Marina di Scarlino, was conceived to provide a complete insight into the Swan world. "We have worked very hard to develop Swan as a global brand through all areas of our activities," explained Nautor's Swan Chairman Leonardo Ferragamo. "The Swan Experience here in Scarlino has provided us with the first real opportunity to showcase all of these aspects and how they relate. This includes our craftsmanship, the many elegant and innovative models and ranges, the One Design racing, the brokerage and charter services as well as the Global Service customer care
"The Swan Experience is an incredible event and a vision which comes from our Chairman to be a brand which does not just build a product but delivers a full 360 degrees Experience," added Nautor's Swan Vice President Enrico Chieffi. "It focuses on enjoying all aspects of one's yacht."
One core aspect of The Swan Experience was the Private Boat Show which provided Swan owners and guests with the rare opportunity to admire a range of models from the marque's proud history. On display are the Swan 48, Swan 54, Swan 65, Swan 70, Swan 75, Swan 78 and the Swan 115.
The Swan Experience will continue to evolve and is scheduled to return next year.
Swan One Design Worlds
ClubSwan 50
Four very contrasting races were completed in the ClubSwan 50 competition where a quality 15-strong fleet, guided by world-class tacticians, battled for supremacy. All four victories were claimed by former world champions -Skorpidi (2019 champion, Russia) winning races one and three; Onegroup (2018 champion, Germany) claiming races two and four. However the former's 13th place (in race two) and the latter's 10th and 11th finishes, together with the shortened racing programme, put pay to their title ambitions. Despite a ninth place finish in what turned out to be her final race, two second place finishes and a fourth propelled Hatari to the title.
"We are very happy," explained Hatari owner Marcus Brennecke. "We had lots of fun and showed great crew work - as a team and as individuals. It is a very competitive class with nice people and a good spirit."
The future for the ClubSwan 50 competition is bright. Owners and sailors are drawn both to the impressive performance and potential of the boat and the intense, exciting nature of competition. "I like the idea of this One Design principle, it's the reason we came into the class. It's fast learning, developing quickly and the owner/driver rule goes towards the idea of gentleman sailing," revealed Stella Maris (Austria) owner August Schram. "I love the spirit of Swan sailing," added Earlybird (Germany) owner Hendrik Brandis, a former Swan 45 world champion. "It is still driven by the spirit of seamanship which is a great benefit. There is a challenge in finding the right balance between ambitious, sporty and not losing that spirit - Swan has done a great job in achieving this. I love the boat on boat competition and fully expect the ClubSwan 50 class to grow."
"It is a fantastic class," added Onegroup tactician Jochen Schümann who has been with the ClubSwan 50 since its beginnings in 2016. "The owners have really committed to it and soon we can expect 20 plus boats on the start line."
ClubSwan 50 Overall Results:
1. Hatari (Ger) 17 pts
2. Niramo (Ger) 19 pts
3. Skorpidi (Rus) 20 pts
4. Earlybird (Ger) 20 pts
5. Onegroup (Ger) 23 pts
Swan 45
Two victories and a third in the week's three races enabled Motions to claim the Swan 45 world title for the first time. Her nearest rival was fellow Dutch crew K-Force, winners of race two, who finished two points behind.
Lennard van Oeveren, Motions owner, was understandably proud. "This is fantastic. We have been building for years and gradually improving our level. We don't sail with a lot of professionals so it is real Corinthian sailing."
Swan 45 Overall Results:
1. Motions (Ned) 5ps
2. K-Force (Ned) 7pts
3. Ange Transparent (Sui) 10pts
ClubSwan 36
A world championship competition will be organised for the ClubSwan 36 class in the future. In Scarlino the fleet contested the Gold Cup. Six crews, five from Italy, formed the competition. Of the four races, three were won by Andrea Lacorte's Cetilar-Vitamina.
"It was a nice week, we did well," reflected Lacorte whose crew have been together for a number of years having also competed in the ClubSwan 50 class. "We are looking forward to having more boats join with many strong teams entering soon."
Those who have been there from the beginning will benefit from being part of a steep learning curve. "The boat can accelerate and decelerate very fast," admitted Sease owner Giacomo Loro Piana. "It offers fun, safe sailing and the maneuverability at high speeds and stability is fantastic."
ClubSwan 36 Overall Results:
1. Cetilar-Vitamina (Ita) 5 pts
2. Sease (Ita) 12 pts
3. Goddess (Ger) 15 pts
Please click here for full standings.
"This week has offered a full immersion into our world," explained Nautor's Swan CEO Giovanni Pomati. " We organised this event for our owners, to show them how the family they are part of is growing and to be closer to them as much as possible. The biggest reward has been the great vibe. Even in this difficult time our passionate Swan sailors have enjoyed the week in full."
The event was hosted in collaboration with the newborn Yacht Club Isole Toscana and the Club Nautico Scarlino.