Italy features five teams including the reigning European Champions Claudia Rossi on Petite Terrible and last year’s world runner-up Carlo Alberini on Calvi Network. Spotlights already on the next J/70 World’s edition to be hosted in Porto Cervo.
San Francisco, CA (September 27, 2016) – The 3rd edition of the J/70 World Championship gets underway today. Hosted by the St. Francis Yacht Club this is the second occasion the championship has been held in the United States as next year’s edition will be contested in Italy (Porto Cervo, Sardinia, September 12-16, 2017 ).
Nearly 80 boats have entered with over 20 nations represented. Racing will be intense with a world class array of tacticians guiding their skilled owner/drivers through the five days racing scheduled. Starting and finishing guns will echo across the Berkley Circle racecourse, an area of San Francisco Bay to the northeast (and leeward) of Alcatraz Island which is located on shallow, tide-protected waters, out of the slippery influence of the swiftest-flowing current that rake the Bay’s deeper waters . The weather has an air of unpredictability providing so far ‘a little’ damp conditions.
A glance at the 2016 Alcatel J/70 Worlds entry list reveals star-studded boats from 15 nations, including J/70 World Champions Tim Healy (Helly Hansen) and Julian Fernandez Neckelmann (Flojito Y Cooperando); J/70 North American Champions Jud Smith (Africa) and Joe Bardenheier (Muse); as well as the outgoing World runner up Carlo Alberini’ Calvi Network (two-time winner at Key West Race Week) and the current continental champions Claudia Rossi on Petite Terrible. Additionally, this impressive list also includes world-class tacticians such as John Kostecki, Olympic medal and the Volvo Ocean Race winner, as well as Bill Hardesty and Paul Cayard who is joining Alberini’s Italian team on Calvi Network-Econsulting. An impressive company to keep for a class that just started sailing in 2012, and before San Francisco’s edition has only held two previous world championships, first in Newport, Rhode Island (2014) and then in La Rochelle, France (2015). And spotlights are already on next year’s Italian event to be hosted in Porto Cervo where model sailing conditions, world-class talent, top-level race management and unbelievable socials will all come together to result in a World Championship worthy of the fastest-growing fleet around.
To follow the Alcatel J/70 World Championship 2016, title sponsor Alcatel has been supplying smartphones to each boat that will be used as onboard trackers to report real-time positions, facilitating a state-of-the-art virtual spectator experience for those ashore. Join live races on www.tractrac.com.