By Mal Butler
As the 200th anniversary Cowes Week draws to a close, large crowds have seen some spectacular racing, close finishes, and breathtaking manoeuvres – all in front of Royalty.
Crews of around 5,000 in more than 640 competing boats continue to battle it out for honours on the Solent, initially being cheered on by the Princess Royal.
Big races on the first day included the Queen’s Cup, for which IRC Class Zero and One plus the Cape 31s were combined. The trophy went to Julian Metherell’s Cape 31 Bullet.
In the biggest class of the week, the X One Design, Astralita, sailed by Fraser Graham, took the line, as they have so many times before, but on this occasion just nine seconds in front of Paul Mitchell’s Lone Star.
The following day, sailing royalty in the form of five-times Olympic gold medallist, Sir Ben Ainslie, made his first appearance of the week, racing on IRC Class One’s Fargo. After three hours of racing New Zealand’s Admiral’s Cup team boat, Callisto, sailed by James Murray, was the winner, with Sir Ben missing the podium on this occasion.
But Cowes Week is not just for the superstars; at the other end of the scale, was the Weekend Warrior Trophy, which lasts for the first three days. This is specifically for boats which perhaps don’t race that seriously, nor very often, but who still want to take part in the event. Selina Dallas, and her crew on Xscapiste, took the winner’s accolades, ahead of local Cowes sailor, Louis Kenna, in second, while Paul Foster, in Harlequin, was third.
On Tuesday, it was Women’s Day, with 102 women helms registering, with the attendance of former British sailing team kite-foiler, Jemima Lines, who has signed up to the GB1 British America’s Cup team, joining the presentation following racing.
The racing was hosted by The Magenta Project, an award-winning charity dedicated to advancing equity and inclusion across sailing and the wider marine industry. Winner of the event was Dawn Bees, sailing Dick Dastardly, with Isabelle Waha, on J/99 Further West, second and Lijia Xu, on Team Magenta, third.
The Women’s Day trophy itself was awarded this year to Hannah Mills, in recognition of both her outstanding achievements on the water and her transformative impact on opportunities for women in sailing.
Wednesday’s glamour race of the day was for the prestigious Britannia Cup, presented by King George VI, in 1950, for the biggest boats in the regatta. Over the last few years, the organisers have combined IRC Class Zero, Class One, and the Cape 31 class into a supergroup to compete for the Cup. At the start, long beats against the tide to the west suited the TP52s, which took the top four slots overall. Hong Kong-owned TP52 Beau Geste were the victors, raising the Britannia Cup above their shoulders.
Isle of Wight Observer