Alfa Romeo season kicks off

Neville Crichton returns to the Giraglia Rolex Cup

Alfa Romeo, the world’s fastest maxi yacht (!), is back in the Mediterranean after its record breaking 2003 season and in the 2004 Giraglia Rolex Cup skipper Neville Crichton’s aim is not just take line honours again, he wants to smash the race record he set last year.

Last June Alfa Romeo took line honours setting a new race record of 22 hours, 13 minutes, 48 seconds, at an average speed of more than 11 knots, smashing the record that had stood since 1998 by a margin of more than two hours.

The inshore races of the 52nd Giraglia Rolex Cup take place 13, 14 and 15 June. The long distance off-shore race starts on June 16 with the whole fleet heading to Genoa where the winners will be welcomed and celebrated at the Yacht Club Italiano, the race organizer, along with the Yacht Club de France and the Societé Nautique de Saint-Tropez.

Neville Crichton, the New Zealand owner and skipper of Alfa Romeo is determined to reach his goal. “ Alfa Romeo arrives in St Tropez faster and more capable in light winds,” says Neville Crichton. “We have just added three line honours wins in the one event we didn’t win last year, the Zegna Trophy in Portofino, and this is proof that our enhancements to Alfa Romeo made during winter are paying off. But this does not mean we will have any easy time in the Giraglia Rolex Cup. There are at least six yachts capable of winning and setting a new race record. Our aim is to take line honours and our target is to set a new race record.”

If Alfa Romeo and Neville Crichton, the reigning New Zealand Sailor of the Year, can take the line honours in all the Giraglia Rolex Cup events, he will take the number of line honours wins recorded by Alfa Romeo since her launch to more than 70 victories. It is this remarkable line of wins that has earnt Alfa Romeo the title of the world’s fastest maxi.

Alfa Romeo - the 2004 season

The first aim of Alfa Romeo is to collect as many succesful races as in 2003.

Everyone is well aware of the fact that this year it will be harder, due to the new high-technology more competitive boats.The challenge is stimulating and proves that races in the Mediterranean attract more and more the real 'Sea-Formula 1' from all over the world.

To head off the newcomers and show its stern to the fleet of regatta participants, Alfa Romeo will be competing with a crew of 20 rather than the 24 of 2003. This strategy has been chosen by the owner and skipper Neville Crichton to make the boat lighter and improve chances of winning. This choice has involved redesigning manoeuvres on board and makes greater demands on the entire crew. In 2003 Alfa Romeo procured new sails according to the type of regatta, which were trimmed to the light winds that dominated the season.

With its records and the victories, the Alfa Romeo boat has also gained international prominence, a sign of the favourable wind that is behind the sailing world and its stars, a sport that has created a vast “sailing life-style community” and which amply repays the investments of those who professionally tackle a challenge that is increasingly technological and is attracting more and more countries.

Commenting on the forthcoming sailing season, Neville Crichton remarks: “This season will be much harder than 2003. Last year we were clearly the boat to beat, the one with the most advanced technology and the most skilful team. We’re starting the season in the limelight. But as the season goes on we’ll see the canting keelboats arrive.To use a comparison with motoring, it’s as if normal air-cooled cars competed against turbo engines; the difference in performance will be more or less that big. This means that we’ll have to concentrate even harder on all aspects of the competition, from tactics to exploiting to the full the crew’s skill and talent.

The maxi yacht Alfa Romeo and Alfa Romeo Yacht Racing Team will participate in all the most important and prestigious sailing events in the Mediterranean:
Giraglia Rolex Cup, (St Tropez-Genua, 13-19 June)
Copa del Rey (Palma de Mallorca 30 July-8 August)
Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup (Porto Cervo, 5-11 September)
Rolex Middle Sea Race (Malta 20-27 October).

Alfa Romeo will be taking part in Spain’s most important regatta for the first time. Spain is a leading competitor in sailing events and its market is very important for Alfa Romeo.

Antonio Baravalle, Vice President of the Marketing Business Unit of Alfa Romeo, commented on the start of the competitive season thus: “With the boat we have further enhanced the Alfa Romeo brand at the international level by showing the deep coherence between the car and the boat in terms of technology, performance, design and style. We have implemented our marketing strategy with communication campaigns that have been carried out both at the sales outlets and through different communication tools in Italy and in the main European markets. But above all, we start with the pride of having become the “serial winner” at sea and having had the boat welcomed by the world’s sailing community.”

Hans Hoegstedt, Communication Director of the Alfa Romeo Business Unit, has therefore announced a new and strong partnership to reinforce the Alfa Romeo Yacht Racing Team: “The leading brand Murphy&Nye has come on board Alfa Romeo as Official Supplier of the crew’s clothing. This important partnership enhances the attractiveness of Alfa Romeo both on the road and by sea. This is a brand that is full of sporting prowess and technological content that after winning the hearts of “engine lovers” has also entranced sailing enthusiasts. A high level of attention and visibility has focussed on our boat, both within and outside Italy. This is a very favourable moment that could see the Alfa Romeo Yacht Racing Team extend to other partners interested taking up the great challenge of the main regattas.”