The 51st Conde de Godó BMW Trophy is already underway

May 30, 2024 – Barcelona, Spain - This Thursday, the 51st Conde de Godó BMW Trophy began with the coastal race for the ORC Double Handed fleet, which started its 105-mile test at 3 PM with a start and finish in Barcelona, passing by the Petrolera, located off the Costa Daurada.

The race began with a Garbí wind of about eight knots from the southwest. The fleet started taking positions, and after the first two hours of sailing, the Swan45 Smerit, helmed by Tito Moure, as expected, quickly took the lead, sailing at 5.8 knots. Following Smerit was Enigma, a Grand Soleil 44R, helmed by Luis Tort and Elsa Poveda. These two lead boats opened up a gap with Shaka, helmed by Iván Olivé and Toni Pozo, and the Dutch Yellow Rose, helmed by Marten Jan Ringers.

The 2023 Conde de Godó Trophy champion, Ia Orana, helmed by Jordi Zaragoza, was leading the pack towards the last hours of the day.

With light winds expected in the first part, the forecast predicts the first boat returning to Barcelona early Friday morning, although this will depend on the conditions encountered during the night and the ascent from La Petrolera, where the entire fleet is expected to pass during the night.

Unai Cilleruelo, who alongside Jesús de Miguel won the Double Handed World Championship with X332 O’Marilou, is competing for the first time in the Conde de Godó Trophy. 

He said, “We have very fond memories of Barcelona because we won the ORC Double Handed World Championship here last year, which is why we wanted to return to compete in the Godó.”

This time, he will compete with another team member, fellow Basque Gonzalo Terceño.

All Defending Their Titles

While the ORC Double Handed fleet continues in full swing, the rest of the fleet will join the Conde de Godó BMW Trophy this Friday. All the winners of the 50th Conde de Godó Trophy are defending their titles in 2024: ORC 0-1 HM Hospitales, ORC 2 M8-Zas Composite Rigging, ORC 3 Laplaza Assessors, ORC 4-5 Asterix, J70 Noticia, and Females Baleària-RCNP.

The ORC 0-1 class will have 15 entries. Last season, the HM Hospitales, helmed by Oscar Chaves, was the brilliant winner. The DK46 from El Balís, skippered by Olympic champion Fernando León, will seek to renew the title. However, this edition features a strong fleet in this category with a total of 15 boats, including two TP52s: Blue Carbon, helmed by Toni Guiu, and Urbania, helmed by Tomás Gasset. Other notable entries include the ClubSwan 42s, such as the German Elena Nova, helmed by Christian Plump, the Andalusian Seabery-MarAmigo, helmed by Basilio Marquínez, making its debut in the Catalan regatta, Blue, helmed by Diana Corominas, and the Estonian Katariina II, skippered by Aivar Tuulberg. Another boat to watch is the Swan 50 Tenaz, helmed by Pablo Garriga, with Jordi Puig at the helm, and the BC46 Soler Cabot, helmed by Elisabetta Quartaroli and skippered by Jorge Martínez Doreste.

In ORC 2, there will also be 15 participants. The Valencian M8-Zas Composite Rigging, helmed by the Francés brothers, returns as the reference, though last year it had an interesting battle with the Dutch Elke and the Catalan Es Tes Unno, which were second and third, respectively. This year, the same contenders are expected to compete for victory again.

In ORC 3, there will be 8 boats, with the Sinergia 40 L’Immens-Laplaza Assessors, helmed by Alexandre Laplaza, consistently on the podiums in Barcelona and last year’s top finisher, surpassing the Uruguayan Lady, a Dufour 40, which is also a regular in this regatta and finished third last year.

In ORC 4-5, Asterix defends its title among 10 boats. Last year, it competed against esCert and Swahili, which were second and third in 2023, separated by just four points.

The races will begin this Friday at 3 PM.

Follow the live race here.