A record 28-boat fleet, ten different race winners, and a podium that was still being rewritten on the final downwind leg.
The Cape 31 fleet closed out a landmark week at the Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez, where Ahmet Eker’s Eker Süzme (Turkey) became the first-ever Cape 31 Gold Cup champions. Twenty-eight boats lined up for the inaugural event; a record for the class, and a clear sign of how far the Cape 31 has grown since its launch.
Eker Süzme led from day two and went into the final day seventeen points clear, their discard already spent on a 21st in race five. That left no room to ease off, and Saturday turned into the toughest test of the week: a short morning window of breeze forced the race committee to squeeze two final races into the Gulf of Saint-Tropez at first light. Eker Süzme held their nerve with a 9th and a 10th to close out the regatta on 41 net points; a team that has sailed together, unchanged, for two seasons.
Behind them, the last day reshuffled the podium completely. Django, fourth overnight, climbed to second on the back of a second place in the final race. Hatari, winners of the very first race of the regatta, held on for third. Stig and Khumbu finished tied on points for fourth and fifth, split only on countback after a tense last two races.
The story of the week was just how open the fleet was: ten different boats won the ten races sailed, a spread that says plenty about how tight racing has become at the top of the class. In the Corinthian division, Motions led from day two and took the title, with Chisum‘s win in the very last race of the regatta securing them second place in that division.
At the prize giving, Victoria Tomlinson Cheney, Mediterranean Class Manager, said:
“What a week. A year ago the Cape 31 Gold Cup was just an idea, and today we’re standing here in Saint-Tropez at the end of the very first one. I’m so proud of what this class has become.
“We had ten different winners in ten races, which shows just how close and open this fleet is.
“To all of you, the owners, the sailors and the teams: you’re what makes this class so special, on the water and off it. So here’s to the first ever Cape 31 Gold Cup, and to many more!”
For more information about the Cape 31 and Cape 26, please contact Davey at Cape Performance Sailing: davey@capeperformancesailing.com
Cape 31 Gold Cup : Full Results:
