One design championships set for Deauville Sailing Week 2009

For its fourth edition from 4th to 7th June 2009, Normandy’s grand marine meet is reinforcing its sports dynamic by playing host to the most competitive series in crewed sailing, which have once again put their trust in the event’s organisation.

As such, in the one design series (identical yachts – races in elapsed time), the Mumm 30 class and the French Sailing Federation have again registered Deauville Week in the French Crewed Championship calendar, which comprises the Tour de France à la Voile and 3 Grands prix (Pornichet – Deauville – la Route des Iles).

Held 3 weeks prior to the start of the Tour de France à la Voile, this meeting will be a ‘warm-up’ for the big summer race, as was the case in 2008 where the top 3 in the event had already sized each other up in Deauville.

The J 80 French Cup circuit, another one design racer, has experienced incredible success for some years now, spurred on by a highly dynamic class which brought together over 150 yachts and 800 participants in 2008.

For the second consecutive year Deauville Week is integrating the French Cup, which will not only highlight efforts to develop this series in Normandy, but also lead on to the region playing host to the 2009 National in Cherbourg in November.

Added to this, the 12 m J109 one design racer-cruiser is the top vehicle for British and European encounters and, as such, is retaining its J 109 EuroCup label at Deauville Week 2009, as the series’ European rendez-vous.

The series is also continuing its development in the United Kingdom, as the most competitive one design series in the legendary “Winter” and “Spring Series” in the Solent and a popular addition at Cowes Week, where around forty of these craft took the start in 2008.

The sportsboat phenomenon has also had considerable impact on every race zone over recent years: a small, very light and very fast craft carrying a large amount of sail area, constantly planing across the water at impressive speeds, they epitomise the trend for ever more competitive and demanding sailing. Playing host to the sportsboat for the first time in 2008, Deauville Week is continuing to develop this series.

As such the K 650, developed by the Yum-Boats yard in nearby Honfleur, is symbolic of the Norman marine industry and will rank amongst the first fleet races in Deauville. The Speed Feet 18, another exciting 5.5 m sportsboat, took part in proceedings in 2008 and is set to further strengthen its participation this year. Finally the Longtze, a new and appealing racing machine from the banks of China, together with the Franco-Chinese crew from the America’s Cup China Team, have also registered for Deauville for the first time on its European circuit.

As regards 7 to 15 m cruiser-racers, these will be competing under a class recognised around the world as the IRC or International Rule Club, and as such the ranking will be measured in corrected time so as to establish a connection between the different yachts.

For the latter series Deauville Week forms a stage of the Trophée Manche (Channel Trophy) of the UNCL (National Union for Ocean Racing, a large club which jointly manages the IRC class measurement with the English members of the RORC or Royal Ocean Racing Club). This Trophy gathers together the main racer-cruiser events on the French side of the Channel, as well as encouraging the development of the Atlantic and Mediterranean Trophies. The Toyota Trophy, organised by the Société des Régates in Le Havre in June, and the Banana Cup, organised by the Cercle de la Voile in Dieppe in May, are 2 other events which are organised around the Trophée Manche.

The SRCO Transmanche (TransChannel) from Caen-Ouistreham on Pentecost weekend, and the Abri Côtier race organised at Le Havre by the SNPH, provide further opportunities to gather Norman racer-cruisers together during the same period and thus make the local Baie de Seine a fantastic area for racing.

A comprehensive competition menu then, which should be enough to whet competitors’ appetites and enable the development of this drive to make Normandy a great venue for watersports!

More information on the event website.