The kermesse of the very elegant “Finnish swans” on the island of Elba has ended
An international fleet confirmed the success of the 10th S&S Swan Rendez-vous held on the Island of Elba under the patronage of the Marciana Marina Sailing Club : 44 yachts (representing Italy, France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Finland, Switzerland, England, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Brazil) built by the Finnish shipyard Nautor Swan between the 1960s and 1990s and designed by the New York studio Sparkman & Stephens have given life to a prestigious sailing event. Not only a sporting event, but also a meeting point for owners who have a great love for their boats, the best ever mass-produced. And unrepeatable.
Large fleet in Marciana Marina
In the four days in which the fleet crowded the docks of the port of Marciana Marina, two races were held on coastal routes, with assistance at sea by CVMM personnel and with the support of the Coordination of the Elba Clubs: the first day, characterized by twenty after leaving Mariana Marina, the boats followed a route that led them to round buoys off Capo d’Enfola, in the Gulf of Procchio to then return to Marciana Marina (about 9 miles).
On the second day, the weather alert which affected the entire territory of the Tuscany Region forced the Regatta Committee to cancel the planned programme; on the third and final day the weather recovered after the strong storms of the night and the competitors found a splendid sunny day and quite harsh wind and sea conditions, perfect requisites for these sailing ships that love demanding situations – westerly/mistral winds from intensity up to 25 knots – but which made it possible to conclude the “competitive” part of the event in the best possible way.
Thanks to these conditions it was possible to regularly complete the course of about 20 miles which, again starting from Marciana Marina, led the competitors to round a first buoy off Capo S. Andrea and then continue towards the other buoys positioned off the Scoglietto di Portoferraio, at Capo d’Enfola, in the gulf of Procchio until arriving again at MM, still in the body of water in front of the port and the town of Elba. This has made it possible to offer even an “unsuspecting” public along the Elba coast a unique glimpse of splendid sails engaged in a truly challenging context!
Marciana Marina 10° S&S Swan Rendez-vous
Everything went well even on land: in fact, the participants experienced great moments of socializing once they returned from the sea.
In Piazza Bonanno, on the seafront of MM where the Sailing Village was also set up – thanks to the collaboration of Nautor Swan, ClubSwan Racing and their indefatigable team, many of the crews’ meetings took place, from the preparation briefings to the races with the regatta committee (chaired by the Genoese judge Fabio Barrasso).
At the opening cocktail of the event, at the moments in which Lars Ström was remembered, who recently passed away to whom the 2023 Rendez-vous was dedicated, the greatest friend that the S&S Swan Owners have ever had and for over 30 years in charge of the technician of the Finnish shipyard Nautor Swan. Many owners have remembered his figure, not only as a great technician, but also a great friend.
The event then concluded in the garden of the Sporting Club where the awarding of the winners and the closing party were held, organized by the talented chef Michele Nardi and his staff who proved to be up to such a commitment: a last moment of aggregation which given the participation of all the owners present and their crews.
The Overall general classification was the prerogative of the Swan 44 Solano of the French owner Cesar Chauffart followed respectively by the Italian Four Winds, Swan 44 of Leonardo Servi and Joconde Swan 44 of Saverio Rotella in second and third place.
As regards the class classifications in the Moby division, which brought together the largest boats, from 46 to 65 feet, the victory went to Vanessa di Matteo and Giulia Salamon, true souls of the S&S Swan Association and of the Rendez-vous ( at the helm, as per tradition, Giulia Salamon), who preceded Tortuga, Swan 47 owned by Filippo and Alina Masci and Joie di vivre, Swan 65 owned by Brazilian owner Riccardo Diomelli.
In the Toremar division which brought together smaller yachts, from 36 to 44 feet, the class classification was the same as the General Classification.
The Racing Division, which included boats of all lengths with the most competitive characteristics, saw the undisputed victory of Vincenzo Onorato’s Swan 38 Mascalzone Latino XXXIII followed by Josian, Eugenio Alphandery’s Swan 36 and the German Matilda Swan 47 of Peter and Melanie Kohlhoff .
Finally, the White Sails division, which sailed with only white sails (mainsail and genoa), saw the Swan 36 Isabella of the German owner Frank Winter finish first in first place ahead of her opponents.
Cigno S&S in Marciana Marina
The awards ceremony then ended with the assignment of special prizes and raffle prizes offered by the sponsors: the Zeppelin Trophy Most Elegant reserved for the most beautiful and elegant “S&S swan” and offered by Jonathan Todhunter was awarded to the boat Italian Nashira, Davide Bizzi’s Swan 65, while the trophy reserved for the Best Maintained Swan was presented to Hypatia, Swan 47 owned by the ship-owner duo Giulio and Ariane Bergamaschi, who was also donated a precious watch by the Elba-based company Locman.
“Once again this event, which we have hosted for the sixth time since 2009 – commented Enzo Danielli, president of the CVMM – has given great prestige both to our sports association and to the entire town of Marciana Marina. We had the “It was the honor of hosting a prestigious international fleet that offered a great show at sea and great liveliness on our docks. It was demanding, but very satisfying. Furthermore, the colors of our club were also brought on board one of the participating boats with the presence on board Isabella of the young sailor Thomas Trentini, of the CVMM Competitive Team”.
Tenth edition of the S&S Swan Rendez vous
At the end of the event, on the occasion of the award ceremony, Matteo Salamon declared: “It was a privilege to be able to work on the organization of this event with friends of the Circolo della Vela Marciana Marina and with the Main and Technical Partners, without whom none of this would have been possible.
We received 44 Sparkman&Stephens Swans in the marine waters, among the best and most beautiful boats ever produced in series and their passionate shipowners; not only that, we have also welcomed many other S&S Swan owners who have flown to Marciana Marina from the four corners of the globe so as not to miss this event which has proved to be highly competitive at sea, in demanding weather conditions, and extraordinarily friendly to earth, with meetings and moments of great friendship, once again sealing the spirit of exceptional “camaraderie” that characterizes those who have the honor of conserving and bringing to life an S&S Swan.
For more than twenty years our commitment, driven by a passion that has no boundaries, is fueled by the Owners who support us with their enthusiasm and push us to do more and more.
Extraordinary sailing history and anecdotes
“Every boat and every owner has an extraordinary story to tell, made up of navigation, anecdotes, family events and lots and lots of passion. I am enchanted by the magic of this rendezvous, where boats and owners have come from all over the world . All of this represents a source of great pride and satisfaction for Nautor Swan. The heritage of our brand has a unique charm and I cannot fail to applaud Matteo Salamon who has been able to create and maintain such a cohesive community on a daily basis.”
These are the words of Federico Michetti, Head of Sports Activities at Nautor Swan, who concludes with a goodbye to the next Rolex Swan Cup, scheduled from 15 to 21 September 2024.
The kermesse on the island of Elba of the very elegant “Finnish swans” organized by the Marciana Marina Sailing Club has concluded
The tenth edition of the S&S Swan Rendez vous also has an important social value: the CVMM donated €20 of the entry fee of each participating boat to the Abbracciamoli onlus Association, a non-profit association that links sport to the care of childhood leukemia and which for several years has also linked its name to the Elba sailing association.
The 10th S&S Swan Rendez-vous, organized by the S&S Swan Association and the Circolo della Vela Marciana Marina with the patronage of the Municipality of Marciana Marina and the support of the Proloco and the active collaboration of the Port of Marciana Marina which hosted the boats of greater thanks to a valuable reciprocity agreement at such events.
With the support of Acqua dell’Elba
The event was also made possible thanks to the support of Zurich, a leading company in the insurance sector which, in Italy, in addition to providing protection and investment solutions, offers prevention services, such as those that promote well-being and improve climate resilience; Rigoni di Asiago, a company that has been producing organic jams, honey and spreadable creams for a century in respect of the planet and the well-being of its consumers; Nautor Swan, the prestigious Finnish shipyard. It was also supported by Acqua dell’Elba; carboway; Kohlhoff Deck Equipment; Moby; Boating Pontemagra; Ronstan/Andersen, Navimeteo, which provided the weather forecast every day, Locman and Toremar.
It was also possible to follow the event remotely thanks to the installation of Metasail trackers on board each participating boat.
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