Italians on Melgina win the first European Series regatta in Opatija

Last weekend, the penultimate regatta of the sixth season of the CRO M24 Cup was held in Opatija, which was also the first regatta of the Melges 24 European Sailing Series. The regatta was organized by Yacht Club Croatia with the support of the Tourist Board and the Municipality of Ičići.

18 crews from five European countries registered to participate in the regatta in Opatija, but two crews had to withdraw, so in the end there were 16 boats on the starting list. The competition was extremely strong, because everyone wanted to achieve a good result at the first regatta of the European Series.

Unlike other CRO M24 Cup regattas, Opatija is specific in that sailing takes place early in the morning, in the already famous Opatija Tramuntana. This was the case this weekend as well. The regatta committee, led by Marko Mišura, took the fleet out to sea in the morning hours on Friday, and one sailing was done in the Tramuntana. The race committee tried a second morning race, but the wind dropped completely and the regatta was called off. The fleet went out to sea again on Friday afternoon and two more races were held in the mistral.

The most pleasant surprise of the first day of the regatta was the young U25 crew Cro-a-sail, who won two races and came second in one. The crew of Roko Stipanović, Matija Reljanović, Antonio Lukšić, Dino Kinkela and Stjepan Vitaljić thus took first place after the first day of the regatta. Unfortunately, this team suffered a major setback on the second day. After the fourth race, held on Saturday morning, the laminate on the bow of their Melges gave way and came off. That was the end of the regatta for the Cro-a-Sail crew.

In the Corinthian division after the first day, the best was the Melgesa Little A crew. The crew's skipper Stjepan Ćesić said:

- In the morning, due to the Tramuntana, we were not the best, we came in tenth, but in the afternoon we corrected some mistakes, gave our best and achieved a solid third and fourth place. We are very pleased with the result. We are starting relatively well, especially recently, because we have been working a lot on that segment. The regatta in Opatija is known for getting up early, often in the dark, but we are used to it. The competition is very strong this year, especially in the Corinthian division, because there are British and Italian crews who are among the best in the world.

On Saturday, the second day of the regatta, the race committee took the fleet out to sea again early in the morning. The morning tramuntana held until 10:30, so that four races were held that day. Namely, the weather forecast for Sunday was not very promising, so the race committee decided to hold the maximum possible number of races on Saturday.

– Vakaros RaceSense technology and SmartMotion electric buoys were crucial for us to be able to complete four races on Saturday. In a total of eight races held at the regatta in Opatija, we did not have a single repeat start, thanks to this technology. If we had not had RaceSense, we would probably have only managed to complete three or four races. Several foreign crews came to the regatta and were using Vakaros RaceSens technology for the first time. Before the regatta, they were a little skeptical about it, but during the weekend they realized how much this technology helps – said the head of the race committee Marko Mišura.

Four more races were held on Saturday, and another one was held on the last day of the regatta, which concluded the regatta. The race committee attempted to have another race on Sunday, but the wind had dropped and conditions were no longer suitable for sailing. By 10 a.m. all crews had packed their equipment, and at 12 p.m. the awards ceremony was held.

The first Melges 24 European Sailing Series regatta in Opatija was won by the Italian crew on Melges Melgina, captained by Paolo Brescia. In second place, with the same number of points, the Melges Razjaren crew captained by Ante Ćesić finished the regatta. The Italians won because they had one more win. In the Corinthian division, the best was ultimately the Italian crew on Melges Taki 4, captained by Niccolo Bertola.

The skipper of the winning crew Polo Brescia said:

- Honestly, we didn't expect to win. The level of sailing in this regatta was exceptionally high, and the competition was very strong. The fact that we won with the same number of points as Razjaren speaks volumes about how close the regatta was. In the end, we may have been a little lucky, but that's how it is in sailing.

The organizers of the ESS CRO M24 Cup regatta from YC Croatia, with the help of the Tourist Board and the Municipality of Ičići, made sure that everything worked flawlessly on land and at sea.

The Melges fleet was stationed at ACI Marina Opatija. Marina Director Ivica Škec said:

– We are pleased to see that Opatija and Ičići and the Kvarner waters are once again bringing together top sailing crews as part of the Melges 24 European Sailing Series. Such sporting events significantly contribute to the recognition of the destination and additionally enrich the offer in the pre-season. ACI Marina Opatija continuously monitors and supports initiatives that encourage the development of nautical tourism and sports activities at sea, and we are especially pleased to see the strong international response and interest in sailing in this part of the Adriatic.

After the regatta in Opatija, we have the last regatta of the sixth season of the CRO M24 Cup in Biograd, which will also be the Croatian Open Championship. Strong Italian and English crews have already announced their arrival, and the entire Croatian fleet is expected to arrive. Ahead of this last regatta, the Melges Razjaren crew is in the lead in the overall standings of the CRO M24 Cup, with Panjić in second and Fjonda in third. In the Corinthian division, the best crew is currently Melgesa Little A., while in the U25 competition, the leading crew is Panjić Jr.

Photo: regate.com.hr