Please select your home edition
Edition
North Sails Loft 57 Podcast

The Royal Ocean Racing Club celebrating 100 years

by RORC 10 Dec 2024 02:02 AEDT
The Rolex Fastnet Race will be the pinnacle of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's centenary racing season in 2025 © Arthur Daniel / RORC

In 2025, the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) proudly marks its centenary, celebrating 100 years of passion, innovation, and commitment to yachting and offshore racing.

The RORC Centenary events are a vibrant programme of first-class racing and superb social occasions. An exclusive range of merchandise has also been specially designed to mark this historic milestone.

"The 2025 season promises not only exhilarating racing, but also exceptional social events at our elegant RORC St James's Clubhouse in London, and the beautifully transformed RORC Cowes Clubhouse on the Isle of Wight," said RORC Commodore Deb Fish. "We invite everyone to join us to enjoy this amazing season - a fitting tribute to a century of excellence in offshore racing."

A landmark season of RORC Racing

The 2025 racing season promises to be an extraordinary celebration with over 10,000 miles of ocean racing, featuring prestigious events across three continents:

  • January: The 3,000-mile RORC Transatlantic Race launches the season from Lanzarote, bound for the spice island of Grenada.

  • February: The electrifying RORC Caribbean 600 challenges sailors with a high-speed dash around 11 stunning Caribbean islands.

  • April and onwards: The RORC European offshore calendar begins with the continuation of the 16-race RORC Season's Points Championship, the world's largest offshore racing series.

  • June: The historic West-East Transatlantic Race, with origins dating back to the 19th century, embarks from the New York Yacht Club in Newport, Rhode Island, destined for Cowes.

  • July: The Rolex Fastnet Race, celebrating its 100th anniversary, will captivate the sailing world, serving as the pinnacle of the season and the dramatic finale for the highly anticipated return of the Admiral's Cup.

  • September: The RORC season of racing out of Cowes concludes with the Salcombe Gin RORC Centenary Race and the Offshore Double Handed World Championship. Outstanding events, cementing 2025 as a year memorable year.

Global celebrations and exclusive keepsakes

With RORC Members worldwide, the Royal Ocean Racing Club is organising centenary celebrations internationally. The Royal Ocean Racing Club will also be unveiling an exclusive collection of merchandise and keepsakes to collect and commemorate the RORC Centenary.

  • Global Celebrations: Hosted by long-standing associated yacht clubs and RORC Members, formal dinners to celebrate the centenary are organised across four continents. Locations include the RORC Cowes Clubhouse, The New York Yacht Club, the Royal Cork Yacht Club, the Yacht Club de France, Amsterdam, Hamburg, The Box Plymouth, the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, the Royal Malta Yacht Club, and the CYC of Australia.

  • RORC Centenary Book: An expert account of the evolution of the Club, exploring significant milestones over the past 25 years, and will follow on from Ian Dear's book which covered in detail the history of the Club up to 2000.

  • Photographic Exhibition: Featuring important documents and rare photographs depicting the evolution of the Club over 10 decades.

  • Centenary Merchandise: Featuring a range of RORC Centenary keepsakes.

For more information, please visit the Royal Ocean Racing Club Centenary page: rorc.org/rorccentenary

Related Articles

Unforgettable Transatlantic Race 2025 finish
First to arrive was Ocean Fifty Calamity, co-skippered by Timo Tavio and Kimo Nordström. It was rush hour in Cowes on Day 15 of the west-to-east Transatlantic Race 2025, as boats crossed the finish line in Cowes within minutes of each other after an epic 3,000-mile battle for top honors in IRC 1. Posted on 3 Jul
Rolex Fastnet Race: Offshore classics set to race
IRC Zero has a rich seam of ocean-going history running through it IRC Zero has a rich seam of ocean-going history running through it. While French round the world race legend Jean-Luc Van Den Heede (aka VDH) isn't competing in the Rolex Fastnet Race, two of his former steeds will be on the IRC Zero start line. Posted on 2 Jul
An evening with the Scaramouche Sailing Trust
Sailing hasn't always been a sport for inner-city state schools like the Greig City Academy Sailing hasn't always been a sport for inner-city state schools like the Greig City Academy (GCA). But they've shown it can be accessible to everyone, with amazing results. Posted on 2 Jul
Admiral's Cup 2025 | Interview with the CYCA Team
A highly experienced team for the revived Admiral's Cup regatta from July 17 The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia is fielding a highly experienced team for the revived Admiral's Cup regatta that will be run from Cowes on the Isle of Wight in the UK, from 17th July 2025. Posted on 1 Jul
Luna shines bright in 2025 Morgan Cup Race
This was a truly international fleet with the majority of the teams from the UK and France The start of the Morgan Cup Race was a spectacular sight with over 100 boats beating to windward into the Western Solent for the fourth race of the Cowes Offshore Racing Series and the 11th race of the 2025 RORC Season's Points Championship. Posted on 30 Jun
Introduction to the Admiral's Cup/Fastnet 2025
After a 22 year abscence, the renowned Admiral's Cup is back. After a break of 22 years, the renowned Admiral's Cup is returning to the international yacht racing scene in July 2025. One short ocean race, three days of inshore racing, and then the fabled Fastnet to finish Posted on 29 Jun
Rolex Fastnet Race at 100 – the making of a giant
At present 469 yachts have entered this special edition - a far cry from its humble origins in 1925 One month remains until the 26 July start of the Rolex Fastnet Race, this year celebrating both its centenary as well as that of the club it spawned: the Royal Ocean Racing Club. Posted on 27 Jun
Tschüss 2 - Transatlantic Titans
Line Honours for Christian Zugel's Volvo 70 in the Transatlantic Race 2025 Volvo 70 Tschüss 2 (USA), owned by Christian Zugel and co-skippered by Johnny Mordaunt, has taken Line Honours in the West to East Transatlantic Race 2025 in an elapsed time of 07 Day 15 Hrs 29 Mins and 10 Secs. Posted on 26 Jun
GBR IRC Championship continue into Autumn & beyond
Attention now turns to the second half of the season With the first half of the GBR IRC Championships successfully complete, attention now turns to the second half of the season, running from July to the end of the year, with events spanning the East Coast, South West, Channel Islands, and inland waters. Posted on 26 Jun
Can a maxi achieve the Rolex Fastnet Race triple?
The fight to claim the prestigious monohull line honours prize is lining up to be a tough one The fight to claim the prestigious monohull line honours prize in the centenary edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's Rolex Fastnet Race is lining up to be a tough one between the world's fastest 100ft maxi yachts. Posted on 25 Jun
North Sails Loft 57 Podcast