Spithill beats his boss

At conclusion of Luna Rossa showdown at the Heat-La Sfida match racing off Trieste

The young Australian crackerjack James Spithill at the helm of Luna Rossa 1 beat 2 –nil the team led by his boss Francesco de Angelis on Luna Rossa 2. At the end of a hard-fought final, raced according to the “best of three” formula, Spithill’s name is engraved for the third consecutive time in the Hall of Fame of the Trieste event.

The first match kicked off in 5 knots of breeze and was filled with totally unexpected goings-on, with the umpires assigning three penalties to the two crews in quick succession. Francesco de Angelis and his team took the lead and were firmly in command until a poor spinnaker drop at the end of the second run forces the boat to a standstill. Spithill seizes the opportunity; after catching up he passes his opponents and crosses the finish line first.

In the second race James Spithill’s crew on Luna Rossa 1 took control from the outset and forced a penalty on de Angelis in the pre-start manoeuvres. The race was sewn-up with Luna Rossa 1 maintaining a 13 second advantage at every mark rounding, to win the match and more importantly the event.

The third place went to Jes Gram-Hansen at the helm of the Mascalzone Latino Capitalia Team boat thanks to the final results in the Round Robin, while Iain Percy's +39 Challenge was fourth.

“I am very happy” said Spithill. “We raced well and made fewer mistakes that de Angelis. We were also very lucky however. This is a fun and technical race, a match race different from all others; the larger boats allow us to improve our efficiency and group cohesion. We will certainly do our best to be back next year.”

Francesco de Angelis and his crew received the Pasquale Landolfi Trophy at the award ceremony. This prize is dedicated to the memory of Pasquale Landolfi, a world re-known blue water yachts man who passed away recently. It was instituted this year by the organisers of The Heat-La Sfida, in collaboration with the monthly Italian sailing magazine Fare Vela. The trophy is awarded to the helmsman who during the qualifying round robins, was first in rounding the first windward buoy the most times.

The sixth running of The Heat-La Sfida has been another great success. The event is the brain child of a group businessmen in Trieste who are sailing lovers and who decided to come together in 1999 founding the consortium TuttaTrieste. The Heat-La Sfida match racing is supported by the Yacht Club Adriaco, the Lega Navale italiana, the San Giusto Yacht Club, the Società Triestina della Vela and by the Società Triestina Sport del Mare and has been made possible thanks to the contributions of the main sponsor Generali and the official partners Acegas Aps and Banca Popolare Friuladria.