Dun Laoghaire Harbour's Cian Guilfoyle concluded his first season in the TP52 series circuit with a second overall on Takashi Okura's Sled at Puerto Portals 52 Super Series Sailing Week in Mallorca. It was a result to give the American boat fifth overall in the Super Series final standings (see results below).

After finishing on the end-of-season overall podium five times, Harm Müller-Spreer and his German-flagged Platoon crew finally clinched the 2023 52 SUPER SERIES title after a one-race light winds showdown on the Bay of Palma, the concluding decider of the Puerto Portals 52 Super Series Sailing Week. But their 2023 championship title win could not be closer, finally eclipsing Ergin Imre's Turkish flagged rivals Provezza only on tie break.

After 45 races at five regattas, the two rival crews finish on the same 198 points aggregate. But as Platoon beat Provezza in this final event - fourth to their eighth - Müller-Spreer finally adds the 2023 season championship to the Rolex TP52 World Championship that Platoon won last month by a single point over Provezza.

Even so until the final finish gun on Sunday, it was incredibly close, Platoon carried a three points overall lead into today's one and only race and though both crews were ahead at different points - at one stage Provezza momentarily had a boat advantage they needed - but with just two separating Provezza in sixth and Platoon in ninth, the title slipped away.

Yet on social media, the series promoters report that the win was ultimately shared: "First equal, equal first. A beautiful sporting outcome saw the Platoon team and owner Harm Müller-Spreer choose to share the 2023 title trophy with Ergin Imre and the Provezza crew.

Puerto Portals 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week
1. PHOENIX (RSA) Hasso Plattner, 5+3+1+1+1+5+6+6+1 = 29
2. SLED (USA), Takashi Okura, 6+5,5(RDG)+5,5(RDG)+3+2+4+3+4+7 = 40
3. ALEGRE (GBR), Andy Soriano, 2+7+6+9+4+8+2+1+2 = 41
4. PLATOON (GER), Harm Müller-Spreer, 3+5,5(RDG)+5,5(RDG)+5,5(RDG)+5,5(RDG)+3+4+2+9 = 43
5. QUANTUM RACING POWERED BY AMERICAN MAGIC (USA), Doug DeVos, 4+4+3+5+9+2+9+5+3 = 44
6. GLADIATOR (GBR), Tony Langley, 1+10(DNF)+7+2+5+1+5+7+5+4(PEN) = 42
7. INTERLODGE (USA), Austin y Gwen Fragomen, 8+2+8+4+3+6+8+8+11 = 58
8. PROVEZZA (TUR), Ergin Imre, 9+6+2+11(DNF)+11(DNS)+12(DNS)+1+3+6 = 61
9. ALPHA+ (HKG), Shawn and Tina Kang, 7+1+9+6+7+9+10+11+4+1(PEN) = 65
10. VAYU (THA), Family Whitcraft, 11+5+5+7+6+10+7+9+8 = 68
11. PAPREC (FRA), Jean-Luc Pethuguenin, 10+8+4+8+8+7+11+10+10+1(PEN) = 77

52 SUPER SERIES 2023 FINAL STANDINGS
1. PLATOON (GER), Harm Müller-Spreer, 45+51+34+25+43 = 198
2. PROVEZZA (TUR), Ergin Imre, 34+42+35+26+61 = 198
3. QUANTUM RACING POWERED BY AMERICAN MAGIC (USA), Doug DeVos,40+43+54+43+44 = 224
4. GLADIATOR (GBR), Tony Langley, 40+66+41+34+47 = 228
5. SLED (USA), Takashi Okura, 45+52+46,5+51+40 = 234,5
6. ALEGRE (GBR), Andy Soriano, 43+64+46+44+41= 238
7. VAYU (THA), Familia Whitcraft, 58+48+65+54+68 = 293
8. PHOENIX (RSA) Hasso Plattner, 57+71+100+39+29 = 296
9. INTERLODGE (USA), Austin y Gwen Fragomen, 45+54+100+58+58 = 315
10. ALPHA+ (HKG), Shawn y Tina Kang, 65+91+72+66+65 = 359
11. PAPREC (FRA), Jean-Luc Pethuguenin, 56+81+58+88+77 = 360

Harm Muller Spreer's German-flagged Platoon team clinched the 2023 Rolex TP52 World Championship title with a thrilling comeback in the final minutes of the final race off Barcelona. From fourth at the last windward mark of the championship, they passed two boats in the closing moments of the downwind, one of them being outgoing 2022 champions Quantum Racing powered by American Magic, to finish second behind Provezza the team which had led the regatta, since the end of the first day of competition.

While there was a measure of heartbreak for Ergin Imré's Turkish flagged team, which was on the verge of their first world championship title and their third regatta title of the season, there was a huge outburst of emotions for the hugely experienced Platoon team as they won the world title for the third time after triumphing in 2017 in Scarlino and 2019 in Puerto Portals.

The last pair of races today, contested for the first time in an E'ly breeze of 7-10kts and nasty Barcelona choppy sea - proved to be a fitting, high-octane climax to what has proven an especially high pressure, intense championship compacted to only three days of racing because of insufficient wind at the start of the event.

Rolex TP52 World Championship Final Standings

1. Platoon (GER), Harm Muller-Spreer, 1+5+9+2+2+3+1+2= 25
2. Provezza (TUR), Ergin Imre, 5+3+1+1+5 +4+6+1= 26
3. Gladiator (GBR), Tony Langley, 2+7+2+10+4+1+1+2+6=34
4. Phoenix (RSA) Hasso Plattner 7+2+6+5+1+8+5+=39
5. Quantum Racing Powered By American Magic (USA), Doug DeVos, 8+4+7+6+10+2+3+3=43
6. Alegre (GBR), Andy Soriano, 3+6+3+7+3+5+10+7 =44
7. Sled (USA), Takashi Okura, 6+1+8+3+6+10+8+9+= 51
8. Vayu (THA), Whitcraft Family, 4+9+4+9+9+7+4+8+=54
9. Interlodge (USA) Augustin - Gwen Fragomen - 9+8+10+4+7+9+7+4+=58
10. Alpha+ (HKG), Shawn and Tina Kang, 10+10+5+8+8+6+9+10=66

Light winds persisted through the afternoon at the Rolex TP52 World Championship in Barcelona on Wednesday, meaning racing remained on hold until the race officer Maria Torrijo decided there was no option other than to display the AP over A flags and cancel for the day.

With the prospect of a positive change in the weather due for Thursday, the objective now is to try to run three races on Thursday and Friday and two on Saturday's final day.

As regular Afloat readers know, Dublin and Belfast sailors are in action in Barcelona.

The Rolex TP52 World Championship has kicked off in Barcelona, Spain, with no clear favourite emerging yet. As the America's Cup teams intensify their training and testing off the Barcelona waters, all eyes are on the TP52 fleet, with sailors holding personal history, national allegiance, or a profound interest in the sport.

The competition features a fleet of 10 boats from seven different nations, all set to line up on the open and challenging race arena. More than half of the teams are widely considered to have an equally realistic chance of securing the 2023 world title.

The Irish sailors participating in the event are Fastnet Race winner and 44 Cup regular Cian Guilfoyle of Dun Laoghaire Harbor, who is racing on the New York Yacht Club team Sled. Meanwhile, Belfast Lough navigator Ian Moore is racing on Interlodge.

Quantum Racing, the reigning world champions, are still a force to reckon with, despite fielding a new team of younger sailors. The US-flagged team has been close in Saint-Tropez, Scarlino, and Menorca but has not won a regatta this year. For the Barcelona event, Quantum Racing powered by American Magic will welcome the return of American Magic’s highly successful Terry Hutchinson as tactician. Hutchinson's return will rekindle one of the grand prix sailing's most enduring rivalries as he is pitched once more up against Italy’s Vasco Vascotto, a past Rolex TP52 World Champion with Azzurra.

Platoon, led by the German-flagged crew and tactician Vasco Vascotto, is also in the running for the world title. The team arrives in Barcelona fresh from winning a very close Mahon, Menorca regatta. Platoon is twice winner of the world title - 2017 in Scarlino and 2019 in Puerto Portals - and is hungry for another world title.

The Barcelona waters can hold surprises, and the world championship regattas must always be tackled full-on at 100 per cent, every slightest mistake penalises the teams. The world is watching as the Quantum Racing and Platoon teams battle it out for the Rolex TP52 World Championship title in Barcelona.

Doug DeVos’ Quantum Racing won the Royal Cup 52 SUPER SERIES Scarlino title in Tuscany, Italy, their third regatta triumph of the five-event 2022 52 SUPER SERIES season. They overturned a one-point deficit to triumph by five clear points ahead of Takashi Okura’s Sled and now carry a five-point lead to the 2022 season big finale in Barcelona in three weeks' time.

After four days of southerly winds, Saturday showdown on Scarlino’s Golfo de Scarlino was contested in a NW’ly Mistral direction, presenting a new challenge to the afterguards. Quantum Racing stayed consistent with a second and fourth whilst title rivals Sled had their worst day of the week.

After finishing fifth in the day's first race, Sled did seem to have resuscitated their title challenge as they lead Quantum Racing on the approach to the windward mark in the second race. But they were then judged to foul Quantum during their tack. And the negative effect of their resulting penalty turns was then exacerbated as they gybed into lighter air and the 2021 champions ended up ninth down the first run.

Seven of the nine TP52 teams won races at a regatta venue that has been especially dynamic

The Italian victory for Quantum Racing comes after a disappointing fourth place at the last event in Puerto Portals, Mallorca, when charismatic owner-helm DeVos was absent, and Hutchinson steered.
He grinned, “To come into the day one point off the lead and stick with it and win, you have to give high marks to our whole team. It is good to see that I steered the boat in Portals and got fourth, and now every regatta Doug has steered, he has won!”

Missing America’s Cup winning mainsail trimmer Warwick Fleury who is reported to be making a good recovery from a health scare, Chris Hosking stepped in to replace the sailor Quantum’s Hutchinson describes as the ‘best mainsail trimmer in the world, whilst they also missed Rodney Ardern their Cup winning pitman who is very much the central figure in the middle of the boat and Curtis Blewitt did an excellent job too.

“I think everyone on this team feels like it was a really, really hard week. I think the way that the team sailed through the downturn (in Portals) was rewarded by the race win yesterday and a good consistent day to finish on. Obviously the Sled team sailed really well, the Platoon team sailed really well and Phoenix sailed well and everyone had some great days and so the whole fleet has come along so much. It is harder than ever. This feels a well earned win for us for sure.”

Hutchinson commented.

While Sled take second place on the Royal Cup podium, Harm Müller Spreer’s Platoon – with new Italian tactician Vasco Vascotto – stole third place today but only by virtue of a tie break with Hasso and Tina Plattner’s Phoenix crew. With their new afterguard line up Platoon started modestly and were eighth overall in the nine boat fleet after the second day of racing. But they finished with a first and second today to underline their red hot potential for the future. Platoon sailed 1,2,7,1,2 in the second half of the regatta.

After joining the team which had been underperforming Vascotto was relieved but very happy, “We have seen a huge improvement since the first days of the week, in communication and a level of happiness on the boat. The best moment was really after the bad result yesterday I felt like we were a proper team as we got through that bad moment as a team with a good atmosphere. And then today the good results follow on from the ability to take the bad result as a team. First of all at the beginning of the week I was so rusty and the reality is I had to wake up to be good enough. The reality is I had great comms with Jordi Calafat who was one of my heroes when I was 12 years. That was important and we enjoyed sailing together and I think our results can get better and better. Harm is so good driving the boat and with better communications everyone calmed down and we did better.”

Seven of the nine teams won races at a regatta venue that has been especially dynamic, open and challenging with many place changes each race. Platoon and Phoenix finished tied in third and fourth, and Provezza in fifth and Alegre in sixth locked on 46pts.

Royal Cup 52 SUPER SERIES Scarlino – Final Results after ten races

1. QUANTUM RACING (USA), Doug DeVos, 2+2+4+5+3+5+6+1+2+4 = 34 pts.
2. SLED (USA), Takashi Okura, 5+1+3+4+1+3+4+6+5+7 = 39 pts.
3. PLATOON (GER), Harm Müller-Spreer, 4+7+8+7+2+1+2+7+1+2 = 41 pts.
4. PHOENIX (RSA), Hasso & Tina Plattner, 3+4+7+1+6+2+5+3+7+3 = 41 pts.
5. PROVEZZA (TUR), Ergin Imre, 8+5+2+6+7+9+1+4+3+1 = 46 pts.
6. ALEGRE (GBR), Andy Soriano, 7+3+1+3+5+8+3+5+6+5 = 46 pts.
7. VAYU (THA), Whitcraft Family, 1+9+5+9+4+6+8+2+4+6 = 54 pts
8. GLADIATOR (GBR), Tony Langley, 6+8+9+8+9+4+9+4,5(RDS)+9+8 = 74,5 pts.
9. INTERLODGE (USA), Austin & Gwen Fragomen, 9+6+6+2+8+7+7+10(DNF)+3(PEN)+8+9 = 75 pts.

52 SUPER SERIES 2022 Provisional standings after four of five regattas

1. QUANTUM RACING (USA), Doug DeVos, 19+33+44+34 = 130 pts.
2. PHOENIX (RSA), Hasso & Tina Plattner, 27+42+25+41 = 135 pts.
3. PLATOON (GER), Harm Müller-Spreer, 26+40+51+41= 158 pts.
4. SLED (USA), Takashi Okura, 43,5+44+36+39 = 162,5 pts.
5. ALEGRE (GBR), Andy Soriano, 43+41+52+46 = 182 pts.
6. PROVEZZA (TUR), Ergin Imre, 61+54+42+46 = 203 pts.
7. VAYU (THA), Whitcraft Family, 45+54+79+54 = 232 pts.
8. INTERLODGE (USA), Austin & Gwen Fragomen, 39+71+50+75 = 235 pts.
9. GLADIATOR (GBR), Tony Langley, 60+73+71+77,5 = 278,5 pts.

American owner-driver Doug DeVos steered Quantum Racing to overall victory at the Abanca 52 Super Series Baiona Sailing Week lifting the first regatta title of the five which comprise the tenth anniversary season of the world’s leading grand prix monohull circuit.

Four times overall champions since the circuit started in Barcelona in May 2012 Quantum Racing managed to impose themselves as the circuit visited the rugged Atlantic coast of Galicia on the north west corner of Spain, responding best to the challenges and demands of a completely new, dynamic race course area.

The picturesque Ría de Vigo served up a welcome variety of wind conditions, from seven to 24 knots over the eight races which were contested. The first four days were sailed in northerly winds but today’s showdown finale for the first time encountered a demanding SW’ly sea breeze.

With a hard won second place behind Andy Soriano’s Alegre in Race 8 Quantum Racing may have secured the Baiona regatta title by seven points but there were some distinctly nervous moments when a Race 9 was started in a gentle breeze and the champions elect were judged to be over the start line early.

More here

Lighter winds prevailed on Galicia’s beautiful Ria de Vigo as the third day of racing at the TP52 Super Series Baiona Sailing Week produced two different race winners and saw Quantum Racing step clear at the top of the leaderboard.

The Transpac 52 (TP52) is a class of yacht used for competitive 52 Super Series yacht racing, and the Audi MedCup previously, besides the world championship of the class.

While Tony Langley’s British flagged Gladiator team, with Paul Goodison on tactics, read the first beat of the first race best – tacking off the signal boat right end of the line and going right – to earn a very comfortable win, victory in the second race for Doug DeVos’ USA crew was added to a third in the first race which means the 2018 52 SUPER SERIES Champions now lead the regatta by two points with two days of racing still to go.

For the second successive day Quantum Racing were the top scoring boat. In contrast, it proved a tough day for Phoenix which had led overall going out on the race course today. They were on the wrong side of the key shifts on both first beats on a demanding racing arena which did not present many opportunities for significant comebacks. The South African crew drop to third overall.

Quantum’s tactician Terry Hutchinson in particular paid tribute to the team’s strategist, Argentine 470 Olympic medalist Lucas Calabrese and Italian navigator Michele Ivaldi “It was a tough day but I have to give high marks to Lucas and to Michele because it is a minefield out there We had good dialogue and discussion and Lucas in particular, his eyesight is very, very good and he is a champion up the rig at picking a side. We are fortunate to have him.”

But Hutchinson cautioned: “We are only half way through and the Platoon guys sailed a great day too. You just know how quickly these things can turn around in the fleet. We need to keep our heads down and stay focused on the task at hand. To me I think Platoon sailed really well today because they passed boats all the time. They had to contend with us a little bit sailing tactically against them. And they kept asking the questions of us, so they sailed great today.”

This Baiona race course area, which is protected by small islands to windward which channel and upset the breeze patterns, is really offering a great new challenge to the battle hardened afterguards as the circuit visits this beautiful new venue on the NW corner of the Iberian peninsula. On the first race the right side paid. The majority then set up for the right on the second start but in time it was the top left that paid enough to see Quantum step out into the lead after taking the pin end bias and making it work.
British owner driver Tony Langley joked that in part their win was down to removing unlucky bananas from all areas of the Gladiator programme but in truth they executed nicely on the start gun in the key position and stuck to their game plan. It is their first race win since Zadar in 2018 but there is clear evidence that this fleet is so much more even, better trained, better coached, better and more closely optimised than ever before.

Double Olympic medallist Xabi Fernandez said of the Gladiator win,

“It was a nice win. It was a much better day for us and not just because of the win but the boat was going much better. We had a nice start got to the right and from there it was straightforward. It is so much easier when you are ahead.”

After a 48 hour battle to source and replace a forestay fitting it was pleasing to see Provezza back on the race course.

ABANCA 52 SUPER SERIES Baiona Sailing Week After 6 races

1. QUANTUM RACING (USA) Doug DeVos 4,5,1,2,3,1 16pts
2. PLATOON (GER) Harm Müller Spreer 5,1,2,4,4,2 18 pts
3. PHOENIX (RSA) Hasso & Tina Plattner 1,3,3,1,8,6 22 pts
4. VAYU (THAI) K & D Whitcraft 2,2,8,5,5,7 29 pts
5. INTERLODGE (USA) Austin & Gwen Fragomen 6,4,4,6,2,9 31 pts
6. SLED (USA) Takashi Okura 3,6,5,7,7,4 32 pts
7. ALEGRE (GBR) Andy Soriano 9,7,6,3,9,3 37 pts
8. GLADIATOR (GBR) Tony Langley 7,8,7,8,1,8 39 pts
9. PROVEZZA (TUR) Ergin Imre 8,10,10.10,6,5 49 pts

The Rolex TP52 World Championship is considered to be a benchmark for inshore yacht racing. The pinnacle event of the TP52 class season gathered ten teams from seven countries in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, for five days of competition. The quest was one of the most coveted prizes in grand prix sailing. After eight races, Takashi Okura’s Sled, from the United States, emerged victorious to claim a well-deserved title. 

The Bay of Palma is a regular stage for international yachting events. The popular location hosted the previous TP52 World Championship in 2019, when Harm Müller-Spreer’s Platoon from Germany was the winner.

The bay is generally regarded as one of the most reliable arenas in Europe for wind. However, the later than usual timing, due to the global pandemic, added an extra layer of complexity to an already challenging contest. The 2021 regatta was played out in demanding and changeable conditions, quite different to the more traditional, stable winds.

Former Rolex World Sailor of the Year, Tom Slingsby, the Australian tactician racing on the Plattner family’s entry, Phoenix: “This time of the year is very tough, since we get the offshore breezes. Palma can be a bit predictable in summer, but in November it’s an open game and boat speed alone is not always going to win. That said, everything you need to know is on the water in front of you, you just have to take a good look and figure out the best course.”

Hasso Plattner’s South African entry Phoenix ended in fourth overall Photo: Kurt Arrigo

More than ever, the ability to adapt to the environment was paramount. Crews were required to dig deep to prevail in frequently shifting conditions. Like many of the elite talent participating, Slingsby is an expert at adjusting. Just before joining Phoenix, the Olympic gold medallist from 2012 was onboard the maxi Comanche setting a new monohull race record at the 606 nautical mile Middle Sea Race. Prior to that, he was helming the Australia SailGP Team’s foiling catamaran to victory at the Spain Sail Grand Prix in Cadiz. Slingsby admits it takes some effort:

“It is very hard sometimes to go from approaching the start line at 40 knots in SailGP to joining the TP52 class, where we are approaching the line at six or seven knots. Changing my mindset can take a day or two before I get my head into it and get my timing and distances.”

The Rolex TP52 World Championship fleet shortly after the start Photo: Kurt Arrigo

Slingsby’s adjustment was evidently rapid. The South African team started with a perfect first day to claim the top of the leaderboard. Defending its pole position on days two and three, an increase in wind strength on the penultimate day of racing added a new element to the equation. The dramatic explosion of Phoenix’s spinnaker in the final leg of Race 7 opened the door for her closest rivals. Errors are always expensive luxuries in such a tight fleet.

After claiming a third victory of the week in Race 8, Sled, with three-time Olympian and America’s Cup helm Francesco Bruni from Italy on tactics, crept into the overall lead. The American crew had a one point advantage over Quantum Racing (USA) and Platoon, with Phoenix a further point behind. The battle for the world championship title was wide open and an exciting final day beckoned.

TP52 Quantum Racing prepares for a spinnaker hoist Photo: Kurt Arrigo

Unfortunately, extreme north-easterly winds over the racing area led to the cancellation of the last scheduled races. Sled’s late burst proved perfectly timed to secure the 2021 TP52 World Championship. Bruni, who also competes on the SailGP circuit, confirmed it had been a true test, especially for the tacticians:

“We’ve never seen Palma like this. It was unbelievable, in one hundred metres you could lose two hundred metres.”

The TP52 World Championship fleet under spinnaker, inlcuding closest to camera Code Zero, Sail no: ITA 23520, Country: NED, Owner: Marc Blees Photo: Kurt Arrigo
Consistency was so difficult to maintain that commitment and crew spirit became the critical components, he explained:

“We were not very consistent. We were up and down a lot, but every boat was the same. Every boat had bad moments and good moments. We were very tight as a team, and I think that’s why we won: concentration and really nice teamwork.”

The SLED crew celebrate their win of the Rolex TP52 World Championship title and also the 2021 circuit title. Photo: Kurt Arrigo

The Championship confirmed its status as the apex of Grand Prix monohull sailing. All ten teams showed the highest level of skill and determination required to compete within this finest selection of sailing talent. Maximizing the tiniest of margins and excelling when it counted the most made the difference.

Over a regatta which consisted of five races, there was no room in a winning scoreline for one big result. While several rival teams left the sunshine island of Menorca today rueing small mistakes which ultimately cost them their chances of lifting the TP52 class’s prestigious Royal Cup, Harm Müller Spreer’s can point to a consistent scoreline as the reason his German flagged team won at the Menorca 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing week for the second time in a row.

The double world champions cut out the costly errors – such as the three red flag penalties – which ruined their possibilities of collecting the Mallorca title last month in Puerto Portals when the 52 SUPER SERIES opened. With John Kostecki and Jordi Calafat combining on tactics and strategy for owner-driver Müller-Spreer, the Platoon team composed a scoreline of 4,3,6,4,1 to win by a couple of points from Andy Soriano’s Alegre. 

Owner driver Müller Spreer smiled “It is so nice to win, it is a bit strange to win here the second time in a row but we had so many different conditions especially the two days with a lot of wind and big waves, they were really tough conditions. But the class is so close. At least five different boats could have won here. It is really, really hard when you make a small mistake. But it is very demanding here, it is shifty and the wave conditions are difficult, especially when the winds are dropping and the waves are still there and that makes it hard to steer the boat fast over the whole race course. Right now it is so close but five boats are certainly in the frame for the overall title. 

While Alegre opened the regatta with a trio of bullets – an openings salvo unprecedented in seven years of the 52 SUPER SERIES nine years of history – Day 3 saw them slip to a 17 point aggregate for the day. Although happy with second, like Vladmir Liubomirov’s Bronenosec and Doug DeVos’s Quantum Racing, who finished third, when the last two windless days meant no further racing was possible, like the rest of the 11 boat fleet, Alegre might still be among the majority who would have loved to have had the chance to complete more races. 

Quantum Racing started badly with an 11th before going 4,4,2,2. Bronenosec, with Vasco Vascotto calling tactics, took the heaviest penalty for a collision at the start of race 2, the resulting 14pts weighing down their 2,2,3,3 to leave them fourth. Platoon win the Royal Cup, one of the class’s most prestigious trophies in sailing. Designed by Bulgari it was donated by King Harald of Norway, Pasquale Landolfi, Willi Illbruck and Yannis Costopoulos originally as a challenge trophy for IMS50 racing, at that time the world’s premier level rating class. Past winners of the Royal Cup include Landolfi’s Brava Q8, as well as Peter de Ridder’s 50 footer Mean Machine. This link from the traditions of the recent past to today is testament to the 52 SUPER SERIES as the world’s leading grand prix monohull circuit. 

As the 52 SUPER SERIES now heads to Palma de Mallorca and the Rolex TP52 World Championship over the first week of November, the circuit standings could not be tighter. Platoon lead on tie break from Quantum Racing on 46 points while Alegre and Takashi Okura’s Sled are tied one point behind. 

Menorca 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week, Final Results

1. Platoon (GER) (Harm Müller-Spreer) (4,3,6,4,1) 18pts
2. Alegre (GBR) (Andrés Soriano) (1,1,1,7,10) 20 pts
3. Quantum Racing (USA) (Doug DeVos) (11,4,4,2,2) 23 pts
4. Bronenosec Gazprom (RUS) (Vladimir Liubomirov) (2,DNF14 (12+2),2,3,3) 24 p.
5. Phoenix (RSA) (Tony Norris) (3,7,3,5,6) 24 pts
6. Sled (USA) (Takashi Okura) (5,8,7,1,4) 25 pts
7. Provezza (TUR) (Ergin Imre) (8,2,8,6,11) 35 pts
8. Gladiator (GBR) (Tony Langley) (6,9,9,10,5) 39 pts.
9. Interlodge (USA) (Austin Fragomen) (7,10,5,8,9) 39 pts
10. THA72 (THA) (Tom and Kevin Whitcraft) (10,5,10,11,7) 43 pts
11. Paprec (FRA) (Jean Luc Petithugeunin) (9,6,11,9,8) 43 pts

Circuit Standings After 2 of 3 regattas

1. Platoon (28,18) 46p.
2. Quantum Racing (23,23) 46 pts.
3. Alegre (27,20) 47 pts.
4. Sled (22,25) 47 pts.
5. Phoenix (26,24) 50 pts.
6. Bronenosec (30,22 +2) 54 pts.
7. Provezza (27,35) 62 pts.
8. Interlodge (37,39) 76 pts.
9. Gladiator (50,39) 89 pts.

A young Irish sailor is making her mark Down Under after swapping the shores of Skibbereen for the bright lights of Sydney.

Self-described “home bird” Mia Connolly had only spent a week outside of Ireland before upping sticks for Australia six months ago.

But she’s since put her years of experience as a pitman and trimmer — both in student yachting and later on such vessels as the J92 Jostler and Royal Irish Quarter-Tonners Cri Cri and Enigma — into a new challenge, crewing Gordon Ketelbey’s TP52, Zen.

Mia set off from Ireland last November with the dream of “that Sydney Harbour dream life”, including witnessing the Sydney to Hobart Race with her own eyes.

Gordon Ketelbey’s TP52, Zen

Yet within just a few short months she’s become a big race winner herself, assisting with the bow as part of the crew that took the IRC Division 1 title in the 2019 Garmin NSW IRC Championship last week.

That result in the Sail Port Stephens regatta came after victory in the Sydney Harbour Regatta State Championships, on the same waters she’d dreamed of watching others race this time year ago.

Mia also crews Ketelbey’s Farr 40, also named Zen, which just took part in its class national and state championships.

Such achievements don’t seem so surprising from someone who grew up in a leisurely sailing family, where roundings of Fastnet Rock were a regular feature of her childhood and Cape Clear Island “felt like a second home”.

Mia tells Afloat.ie: “It is now coming up to my six months here in Sydney and my journey in getting this far has no doubt been a challenge, but I guess dedication has no limits and I’m looking forward to seeing how the future unfolds.”