BOL D’OR ROLEX, 11 – 12 JUNE 2005
A REGATTA OF INCREASINGLY HIGH STANDING
The 67th Bol d’Or Rolex regatta is preparing to unfurl its sails on Saturday 11 June. This year, the organisers, led for the last time by the highly dynamic Jean-Loup Gabayet, are counting on the participation of some 500 boats. And just like the previous races, the event will be a veritable festival on Lake Geneva: both for the yachtsmen who have come to take part in a sporting competition
of increasingly high standing, and also for those who are certainly less ambitious but for whom the Bol d’Or Rolex represents a unique event.
The Bol d’Or Rolex without doubt remains the season’s flagship event on Lake Geneva, something that the main partners, Rolex and Mirabaud & Cie, have well understood. The days are now long past when only 26 yachts reached the finishing line, as was the case in the very first race in 1939. This year, the Bol d’Or Rolex with its nearly 500 participants will have a particular edge, since three yachts are in the running for the Bol D’Or and Bol de Vermeil awards. These awards are granted on a permanent basis to boats that have won their category of the regatta three times in five years.
If Ernesto Bertarelli’s Alinghi secures victory this Saturday 11 June, for the second time after 2001, the crew will obtain the Bol d’Or award for good. As far as the single-hulled yachts are concerned, where the Bol de Vermeil is at stake, a fierce contest is in store between the Psaros 40 Tilt and Nicolas Engel’s Taillevent, both yachts having monopolised first place in the single-hulls category since 2001.
A new class can also be observed at close quarters: the M2. Originating from the former F-class multi-hulls, the M2 are small racing boats, very light-weight and managed by a crew of three or four. So as to consolidate this new category, an association was established, the AM2, which now has seventeen members and already boasts its own championship. Obviously, the Bol d’Or Rolex features on the M2 championship programme as stage 5.
This new M2 class is somewhat reminiscent of that created a year ago by the M1, the great Décision 35. Based on the concept of being able to compete on equal terms, the M1 yachts are thus fully integrated within the Swiss sailing sports scene. Thanks to their identical structure, these catamarans are specifically adapted to the sailing conditions on Lake Geneva. Moreover, the seven crews that will take part in this year’s Bol d’Or Rolex have everything going for them. Thus, some of them have called upon experienced racers: Loïck Peyron, genius when it comes to multi-hulls, will be aboard Nicolas Grange’s Okalys, three-time America’s Cup winner Russell Coutts will join Gonet & Cie Banquiers, and Ellen McArthur, the youngest woman to attempt solo round-the-word races, will be invited to reinforce Guy de Picciotto’s Zen Too.
Although the M1 are naturally aiming to carry off the prizes, the approx. 500 other boats that will also be taking place in the renowned Bol d’Or Rolex should not be forgotten. The organisers are fully aware of this, and are not losing sight of the fact that the key factor for the success of their regatta is security. This includes setting up a security zone around the starting line to prevent the many motorboats disturbing the smooth running of the race, as well as ensuring, on the water level, that all participants’ craft are lit once night falls.
Finally, with the reintegration of the Bol d’Or Rolex in the Lake Geneva ACVL Championship, all participants are allowed to use their personal, permanent racing board: a genuine “number plate” complete with gauge certificate. This innovation responds to the demands of many yachtsmen, and will facilitate the work of the organisers’ racing office.
