The Italian who chastises the French: The Sailor of the Year is Ambrogio Beccaria

The 2019 TAG Heuer Sailor of the Year is Ambrogio Beccaria. The award, organized by the Journal of Sailing since 1991, was presented at the Evening of Champions at the TAG Heuer VELAFestival in Santa Margherita Ligure. The jury of the Sailing Newspaper, after the 65,964 votes cast by readers on the site
velistadellanno.giornaledellavela.com
which at the last stage were only advisory in nature, unanimously decided to award the prize to the 1991-born Milanese boy. Ambrose literally dominated the Mini 650 season with his new Pogo 3 Geomag in the French circuit dedicated to the class, also winning the title of French course au large champion. Beccaria also got the 2019 season off to a great start, winning the first regatta on the calendar, the Pornichet Select, a 300-mile solo race that runs all the way around the Bay of Biscay, confirming him as one of the undisputed leaders among the Mini 650 series at the international level.

The other prizes included in the 2019 Sailor of the Year were also awarded at the Evening of Champions.

TAG HEUER INNOVATION AWARD

The Innovation prize went to Ocore’s Palermo boys, Francesco Belvisi and Daniele Cevola. The two young designers from Palermo are a volcano of invention and innovation. With their company Ocore, which focuses on 3D printing, robotics, and advanced polymer composite materials, they built the world’s first 3D printed boat, a Mini 650 destined for Italian skipper Alessandro Torresani to participate in the 2019 Mini Transat.

TAG HEUER YOUNG AWARD by B&G

The Young by B&G award went to kiter Sofia Tomasoni. Bolognese 17-year-old, good-girl face hiding unparalleled grit in the water. Determination that led her, in the first appearance of the TT:R (Twin Tip Racing) kiteboard at the Olympics (so far only the youth ones) , to win a gold for Italy in the waters of Buenos Aires after a season full of satisfactions: in one year she triumphed at the world and European youth in Dakhla, Morocco, at the kitesurf world championships and also at the national youth championships, as well as winning silver at the TT:R youth worlds.

TAG HEUER PERFORMANCE AWARD

The Performance award went to one of the most talented “flying” sailors we have in Italy, Carlo De Paoli. Reigning Italian moth champion and European runner-up, the Lombard pharmacist discovered the world of foil sailing relatively late, but quickly realized that “flying” was his size. Immediately noticed in the world of big sailing, he was chosen by Luna Rossa helmsman Francesco Bruni as his trainer for the Moth world championship in Bermuda, and has proven on several occasions that he can race at the top of the international fleet.

TAG HEUER AWARD #DONT’CRACKUNDERPRESSURE

The #dont’crackunderpressure award was given to brothers Francesco and Giacomo Galimberti. Twenty-two and 20 years old, from Milan, the two brothers proved that in the summer, young people can do something else rather than spend their days on their cell phones and evenings in discos: circumnavigating Italy, from Ventimiglia to Trieste, on Banana Joe, a small Hobie Cat from the 1980s. Fifty-four days on an uninhabitable 5-meter boat. Stopping to sleep on beaches, cooking over fires.

SPECIAL AWARDS.

Not only the awards dedicated to the Sailors of the Year in the great Evening of Champions but also much more. Among them, two important prizes were in fact awarded by drawing among all readers who participated in online voting on the website
velistadellanno.giornaledellavela.com
: a boat cruise raffled off by GlobeSailor and a TAG Heuer watch.

TAG HEUER MOST VOTED AWARD – MORGAN IV

The winner of the TAG Heuer Most Voted award, or the candidate who took the most votes by adding up the three voting phases, goes to Morgan IV, Nicola De Gemmis’ Grand Soleil 39, which garnered an incredible 7124 preferences.

ECO MEDPLASTIC AWARD – DAN LENARD

The prize raffled off by Medplastic, the association created by the Journal of Sailing to safeguard the Mediterranean, could only go to Dan Lenard this year. The superyacht designer who crossed the Atlantic solo on a recycled ten-meter barge with no engine or electronics.

CAREER TRIBUTE AWARD – CAPRERA SAILING CENTER

Caprera Sailing Center received the prestigious Tribute to Lifetime Achievement award. This is the motivation: “In 52 years it has trained 130 thousand sailors and more than a thousand instructors: the Caprera Sailing Center, set in the most beautiful and wild spot of the La Maddalena Archipelago, is the most famous sailing school in Italy and among the most important in the Mediterranean. Society changes, generations come and go, but the spirit of the CVC remains!” Come all and celebrate!

MAY 4 AT THE VELAFESTIVAL COMES THE SAILING CUP

On Saturday, May 4, at VELAFestival it will be time for VELA Cup, the most crowded sailing-racing event in the Tyrrhenian Sea, which this year will come to the water with over 150 boats on Saturday alone, rising to over 200 with the scheduled repeat on Sunday. Crew briefing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. May 4 at the TAG Heuer stage on the Santa Margherita Harbor.

At this link the complete agenda with day-by-day events
http://www.velafestival.com/agenda/

A complete list of exhibitors can be found at this link
http://www.velafestival.com/espositori-2019/

THE TAG HEUER VELAFESTIVAL

TAG Heuer VELAFestival is the big sailing and boating festival organized by the Sailing Newspaper. Enthusiasts will find here a mix of beautiful boats from 2 to 30 meters; accessories, clothing, and sails for purchase directly at the booth; services for boating and all-around Mediterranean tourism; seamanship tutorials and sailing school for young and old; great events; and videos and films of exciting sea stories. But the party will not only be ashore and on the dock. On the sea, for the fourth consecutive year, is the VELA Cup (last year with 206 boats at the start), a sailing event where boats of all kinds, from three meters and up, can be compared by simply declaring the length overall and the distinction between “cruising” and “racing” classes.