5th edition of The Grand Tour - Stage 3
by Manuel Vlacich 29 Jul 10:38 PDT
17 July 2026
The Grand Tour stage 3 - Crossing the Prime Meridian under sail © TGT
The last sporting leg of The Grand Tour 2026 came to a close on Friday 17 July in Greenwich, on
the River Thames. The project was created by Manuel Vlacich and Franco Deganutti, both from Monfalcone, Italy and is running for a fifth edition; this year was dedicated to a theme as simple as it is profound: time.
After entering the Guinness World Records in 2022, and having sailed, among other places, at the highest
navigable point in the World in 2023 (Bolivia, Lake Titicaca, +3,812m above sea level), in Ilulissat Bay among
the icebergs of Greenland, and in Europe's largest underground lake (St. Leonard, Switzerland), then in 2024 the
sailors were named "Sailor of the Year" in the Passion category by media outlet Giornale della Vela. In 2025 they took second place at the most-attended lake regatta in
the World, in Hungary.
The Grand Tour Sailing's ventures are also grounded in sustainability, so much so that
One Ocean Foundation — a non-profit initiative that seeks solutions to ocean problems by promoting a
sustainable blue economy, inspiring international leaders, companies and individuals — has granted its free
patronage to The Grand Tour Sailing initiative.
In an age that moves ever faster, the two sailors chose to stop and tell the story of time through three places
in the world where it takes on a different meaning. They set off from India, on the Ganges at Varanasi, where
time has stood still: the first documented occasion on which a sailing boat has navigated the waters of the
sacred river.
They then travelled north to Sommarøy, Norway, the island that once proposed abolishing time
itself, where under the midnight sun time simply doesn't exist. And they closed the circle in Greenwich,
England, sailing up the Thames and crossing under sail the Prime Meridian, the line from which the entire
world begins to count time.
"Everything in London went perfectly," says Vlacich, just back home in Monfalcone. "We sailed up and then back
down the Thames in the afternoon, both to avoid the morning's commercial traffic on the river and following
a careful study of the tides, which vary by 7 metres within just a few hours, clearly generating very
strong currents.
"It was an extraordinary experience, one that also drew great curiosity from the many people
crowding the pubs along the Thames that day, watching us sail just metres from them on decidedly unusual
boats.
"The contribution of Greenwich Sailing Club, our logistics base, was fundamental, as was that of a
volunteer from the Shadwell Club near the Tower Bridge, who followed us throughout the crossing, and of
course the Port of London Authority, with whom we coordinated to bring the feat to a successful conclusion."
ONE YEAR TO EXPLORE, ONE YEAR TO COMPETE
As is now a well-established tradition of the project, The Grand Tour Sailing alternates, year after year,
between two complementary spirits. There are seasons, like the one just concluded, dedicated to
exploration: places never sailed before, often extreme or remote, tackled with the Tiwal inflatable sailing dinghies because they are
light and easily transportable.
And there are seasons dedicated to pure competition,
in which Vlacich and Deganutti go back to being racers, taking part in international regattas with their racing
boats: the Melges 24, the UFO28, the Meteor and the Hobie Tiger.
For this very reason, the 2026 season is wrapping up a few months earlier than usual. From September, the
two sailors will return to competing for Italian Sailing Federation's XIII Zone, whose packed regatta calendar
will see them once again as protagonists in home waters.
2027: THREE NEW INTERNATIONAL CHALLENGES
Vlacich and Deganutti have already launched plans for next season's competitive campaign, which will
see them race at three internationally significant events: a regatta in the Caribbean, a return to England, and
finally an event in Europe. Three ambitious challenges that, like every Grand Tour venture, will require major
logistical preparation — transport, permits and organisation — the true hallmark of the project.
With the adventure over, it's time to take stock: "Without doubt, the strongest experience from every point
of view was the one on the Ganges. But for each of these adventures, what we carry in our hearts above all
are the wonderful personal relationships we built with everyone we met and relied on to organise and carry
out these legs."
And so the fifth edition of The Grand Tour Sailing comes to a close — early, but no less intense for it. This
time, time wasn't measured: it was crossed, from Monfalcone to the world, always with the same spirit.
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