TAG Heuer Sailor of the Year 2015: the most titled offshore boats

The presentation of the 2015 TAG Heuer Sailor of the Year nominees continues: in this installment we detail the winning offshore boats of the 2014 season, because boats have souls too, and we decided to make them compete against people.

WHAT IS THE SAILOR OF THE YEAR
Here we go. Once again this year the time has come to award the most prestigious prize in Italian sailing. The Sailor of the Year has been awarded since 1991 to the best Italian sailor elected by a web poll that involves thousands of fans in the first phase and is decreed by a jury of quality. And, this year we thought we would involve you even more: never, as in the coming days, it will be your votes that will decide who will be part of the shortlist of candidates for the final victory, among whom will be revealed, at the 2015 TAG Heuer VELAFestival (May 7-10 in Santa Margherita Ligure: find everything about the event here), the TAG Heuer 2015 Sailor of the Year.

THE “MAGNIFICENT HUNDRED”
There are many, deserving sailors who have distinguished themselves through achievements, feats, passion and even patronage. Too many to make a strict initial selection. So, rankings and articles in hand, in the editorial office we took stock of the past season by identifying 100 “nominees” among drifters, specialists in Olympic classes, monotypes, IRC and ORC offshore racing on the vintage sail circuit, sailors and designers. But not only that. Every owner knows that the boat has a soul. So, we said to ourselves, why not treat it as a person? We also created two ad hoc categories related to both offshore and classic winning boats.

HOW IT WORKS.
These days we are presenting to you, category by category, the candidates we selected. Mind you that the categories are only indicative, because this will be a real “cauldron” in which the rule of “all against all” will apply: once the submission of nominations is over, we will go to the votes, and it will be you, with your preference expressed on our site, who will make the subsequent skimming. From 100 there will be 50 left, from 50 25, and so on, until you identify the shortlist of hopefuls whom you can meet in person at the TAG Heuer VELAFestival and among whom a quality jury, made up of the best journalists and sailing professionals, will decide (also taking into account the number of votes you cast) the winner of the TAG Heuer Sailor of the Year 2015.

KNOW IN DETAIL THE CANDIDATES ALREADY SUBMITTED

1- IRC/ORC WINNING OWNERS,
2- THE MARINERS
3- THE DERIVISTS

CANDIDATES ON THE CATWALK – THE WINNING OFFSHORE BOATS

ANGRY RED UNITENERGY – T-34
Angry Red UnitEnergy is Domenico Cicala’s T-34 Italian Offshore Champion 2014 in Group 3: rating or no rating, the boat is a real bomb, able to leave behind hulls of much greater lengths in real time. The project is by Studio Lostuzzi in collaboration with Beatrice Pecoraro.

BACIOTTINHO – DUFOUR 34 PERFORMANCE
Still in the upper echelons of the rankings, Giuseppe Tadini’s Dufour 34 Performance Baciottinho (skipper Giango Tadini) won the Italian Offshore in Class 4: it is the best example in 2014 of how a 2009 production boat, properly optimized and driven by a “sailed” crew, can wet the noses of one-off racing hulls.

BLACK BULL – J/111
Black Bull is the boat that won the Italian Offshore Championship: captained by Piero Plato, it is a J-111. A very fast boat, whose lightness results in almost drift-like acceleration, signed by Johnstone. The interior of the 11-meter is stripped down to its essentials.

BLUCOLOMBRE – FIRST 40.7
The First 40.7 is confirmed as one of the most successful boats ever: Blu Colombre, owned by Massimo Juris, won the Italian Offshore Championship in the category reserved for double crews. Juris also took the satisfaction of winning the Palermo-Montecarlo. Farr’s hull, designed back in 1998, continues to make waves on race courses, lending itself successfully to small-crew sailing as well.

CIPPA LIPPA 8 – COOKSON 50
Guido Paolo Gamucci’s Cippa Lippa 8 won the Italian Offshore Championship in Class A: it is a Cookson 50, a boat designed by New Zealanders for New Zealanders, ideal for long races (like the Sydney Hobart). This year Cippa Lippa had a nice win in real time at Rome for Two / for All.

DUVETICA WHITE GOOSE – ARYA 415
The Two Hundred, the Five Hundred, the Italian ORC 1-2 title. What a banner season for Duvetica White Goose, Sergio Quirino Valente’s Arya 415, a boat signed by Lostuzzi.

ENERGY SOLUTION – ILC 26
The minialtura also wants its share: therefore, we could not fail to include the Italian champion hull in this category, the ILC26 Energy Solution led by experienced Garda sailor Oscar Tonoli!

RED BLOOD CELL – ESTE 31
It may be a 1996 design, but the Este 31, born from the pencil of Gérman Frers, continues to provide satisfaction. It is no coincidence that Alessandro Burzi, owner of the Este 31 Globulo Rosso, came close to winning Overall Owner of the Year (which went to Giuffré) in 2014, triumphing in Category 4, reserved for smaller boats.

LOW NOISE – M37
Born in 2007 to a design by Maurizio Cossutti, the M37 Low Noise has won a lot, along with its owner Giuseppe Giuffré: an 11-meter created to be a war machine especially in ORC races. In 2014 he pulled off a one-two punch, winning the ORC World and European Championships.

MILU – MYLIUS 14E55
Andrea Pietrolucci’s boat, winner of the Italian Offshore Championship in Class 1 (Pietrolucci also won the title of 2014 Owner of the Year, also in Class 1) and the Italian Offshore Sailing Cup is a Mylius 14E55 (photo above), designed by Alberto Simeone. A sleek hull that is extremely comfortable when cruising, but capable of screaming performance in racing as well.

NEO CARBON – NEO 400
Twelve meters to run and easy to manage. In a nutshell, this is the philosophy of the Neo 400, designed by Giovanni Ceccarelli from the sail plan studied by Paolo Semeraro. Third overall at the Rolex Middle Sea Race, he won in the IRC 2 ranking.

SELENE – DEHLER 44
How to make a production boat successful? Selene, Massimo De Campo’s Dehler 44 (2014 Owner of the Year in Class 2) is the classic example: excellent crew and Cossutti’s “hand” in replacing appendages and ORC optimization of the sail plan.

THE FULL LIST
While we wait to know the story of each of them in detail and the reasons for our candidacy, here is the list of names (strictly in alphabetical order) of the “magnificent hundred,” men and boats:

Achille Onorato, Alberto Bolzan, Alberto Bona, Alberto Rossi, Alberto Simeone, Alessandro Caldari, Alessandro Di Benedetto, Alice Secco/Martina Galvan, Andrea Fornaro, Andrea Mura, Andrea Pendibene, Angry Red Unitenergy (T-34), Antono Squizzato, Baciottinho (Dufour 34 Performance), Black Bull (J-111), Blu Colombre (First 40.7), Carlo Alberini, Carlo Ciabatti, Carlotta Omari/Francesca Russo Cirillo, Carolina Albano, Cippa Lippa (Cookson 50), Daniele Benedetti, Diego Negri/Sergio Lambertenghi, Duvetica White Goose (Arya 415), Edoardo Lupi, Elena Berta/Giulia Paolillo, Elisabetta Fedele, Energy Solution (ILC26), Ettore Botticini/Lorenzo Gennari, Flavia Tartaglini, Flavio Favini, Francesco Conte, Francesco Marrai, Giancarlo Pedote, Gianclaudio Bassetti, Gianluigi Ugolini/Giulio Zizzari, Gianmarco Planchesteiner, Giorgia Speciale, Giovanni Ceccarelli, Giovanni Soldini, Giulia Alagna, Giulia Conti/Francesca Clapcich, Giuseppe Giuffré, Giuseppe Puttini, Globulo Rosso (Este 31), Guido Miani, Il Moro di Venezia (Maxiyacht IOR, 1975), Joyce Floridia, Lanfranco Cirillo, Latifa (Fife, 1936), Low Noise (M37), Luigi Pavese, Marco Gualandris/Marta Zanetti, Marco Rodolfi/Matteo Auguadro, Margherita Porro/Andrea Francesca Dallora, Marino Quaiat, Mario Pirri, Marta Maggetti, Martino Orombelli, Matteo Miceli, Matteo Polli, Mattia Camboni, Maurizio Cossutti, Michele Benamati, Michele Cittadini, Michele Ivaldi, Michele Zambelli, Milù (Mylius 14E55), Namib (Sangermani, 1967), Neo (Neo 400), Nyala (12 M.S.I., 1938), Paolo Bertuzzi, Patrizio Bertelli, Piero Plato, Pietro Bianchi, Riccardo Andrea Leccese, Roberto Biscontini, Roberto Bosi, Roberto Spata, Roberto Tomasini Grinover, Ruggero Lo Mauro, Samurai (Sangermani, 1962), Sandro Montefusco, Selene (Dehler 44), Silvia Zennaro, Simone Ferrarese, Sirius (New York 32, 1937), Stefano Cherin/Andrea Tesei, Studio Nauta, Tommaso Chieffi, Tommaso Fabbri, Tommaso Spadolini, Toni Punzio, Umberto Felci, Valentina Balbi, Valerio Galati, Vasco Vascotto, Vittorio Bissaro/Silvia Sicouri, Vittorio Gallinaro, Wianno (1932).

DO YOU THINK ANYONE IS MISSING AMONG THE IRC/ORC/ALTURA OWNERS? NO FEAR
If you believe that some other name may be part of the shortlist, please do not hesitate to indicate this by sending an e-mail to speciali@panamaeditore.it, accompanying it with a photo of the candidate of your choice and the reason for the nomination. We will create a special section of “your picks,” and the top vote-getters will have the right to join the nominees.

FIND OUT WHAT THE SAILOR OF THE YEAR IS
FIND OUT WHO WILL BE HONORED
DISCOVER THE DAY OF CHAMPIONS