Melges 24 European Championship 2024 in Split – Day 1
by International Melges 24 Class Association 1 Oct 03:02 PDT
27 September – 4 October 2024
The 2024 Melges 24 European Championship commenced amid light and unpredictable winds, presenting a challenge for both the sailors and the Race Committee. Organized by the JK Split and the International Melges 24 Class Association (IM24CA), the competition featured 41 boats from 10 nations.
Following an unsuccessful first attempt by the Race Committee, led by PRO Marko Misura and IM24CA Championship Coordinator David Bartol on the Bravo course adjacent to Split’s commercial harbor, the fleet relocated to the Alfa race course, which lies within the bay between Trogir and Split. The two races, marked by tricky wind conditions, were won by Ante Cesic’s Razjeren (CRO, 1-14) and Cuyler Morris’ Dark Horse (USA, 7-1), the latter having just launched a few days prior. Dark Horse’s impressive performance awarded them the Boat of the Day title, giving them a provisional overall lead by a single point over Andrea Racchelli’s Altea (ITA, 5-4), the former Melges 24 World Champion.
Cuyler Morris shared his enthusiasm, stating: “After two false starts, we shifted to the Alfa course where we encountered a steady breeze and completed two excellent races. This was our first real opportunity to test the boat within a competitive fleet, and we’re thrilled.”
See the Facebook video interview
Former Finn class Olympian sailor Ivan Kljakovic Gašpic’s Universitas Nova (CRO, 3-8) is positioned third after a strong comeback in the second race, moving up from the back of the fleet to finish eighth. “The initial upwind leg was tough, but we finished strong due to solid tactical decisions,” noted Gašpic. While he appreciated the first race, the second presented its challenges with shifting winds and a difficult top mark rounding, although they managed to gain positions on the downwind leg.
See the Facebook video interview
Completing the top five are Cro-A-Sail (CRO, 2-11), helmed by Matjia Reljanovic, and Razjeren, the winner of Race 1.
In the Corinthian division, Miles Quinton’s Zhik Race Team (GBR, 6-18), with Geoff Carveth steering, and the current Corinthian World Champion Mataran 24 (CRO, 12-3), captained by Ante Botica, emerged as the winners of the Corinthian races. Mataran 24 holds the lead in the non-professional rankings with a nine-point lead over the Zhik Race Team, who are just one point ahead of Jonas Berntsson’s SWE-715 (9-16).
Racing will resume on Tuesday with at least two additional races anticipated, likely challenging due to light winds. The warning signal is scheduled for 12 p.m.
Top 10 boats (after 2 races, no discards):
1. DARK HORSE (USA 870) – Cuyler Morris, 8 points (7, 1)
2. ALTEA (ITA 722) – Andrea Racchelli, 9 points (5, 4)
3. UNIVERSITAS NOVA (CRO 760) – Ivan Kljakovic Gašpic, 11 points (3, 8)
4. CRO-A-SAIL (CRO 782) – Matija Reljanovic, 13 points (2, 11)
5. RAZJAREN (CRO 867) – Ante Cesic, 15 points (1, 14)
6. MATARAN 24 (CRO 649) – Ante Botica, 15 points (12, 3)
7. MAKAKO 24 (CRO 383) – Marko Matic, 18 points (16, 2)
8. CEZIBORDO (CRO 517) – Enia Nincevic, 19 points (4, 15)
9. YIKES (CRO 516) – Tonci Stipanovic, 21 points (14, 7)
10. MELGINA (ITA 854) – Paolo Brescia, 23 points (17, 6)
Top 3 Corinthian boats:
1. MATARAN 24 (CRO 649) – Ante Botica, 15 points (12, 3)
2. ZHIK RACE TEAM (GBR 694) – Geoff Carveth, 24 points (11, 13)
3. NN (SWE 715) – Jonas Berntsson, 25 points (9, 16)
Full results
