Please select your home edition
Edition
Marine Products Direct 2023 - Calypso LEADERBOARD

ORC's 50th annual meeting points towards a strong future

by ORC Media 31 Oct 2019 06:22 GMT
Close competitive racing awaits those who attend next year's 2020 ORC/IRC World Championship in Newport © Sander van der Borch

Today's annual meeting of the Offshore Racing Congress (ORC) marks 50 years since this organization started as the first international body to organize and develop a system to fairly handicap offshore racing yachts.

Spurred by the possibility of an offshore discipline in the Olympic Games, International Yacht Racing Union (IYRU), predecessor to World Sailing, urged the Cruising Club of America (CCA) and the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) to devise a unified international rating system for offshore sailing. After several meetings starting in 1967, the two devised the new International Offshore Rule (IOR) to begin use in the 1969 season.

In November of that year a constitution was approved to govern the new Offshore Racing Council (ORC) as a democratic body formed to develop and manage this new rule system. The IOR went on to be used for the next three decades, with thousands of boats competing in local and international events throughout the world.

As reported at today's Congress, the system has more sophisticated modern tools to fairly handicap offshore-capable yachts but is still immensely popular all over the world, with over 10,000 certificates issued to boats from 43 countries, making it the largest measurement-based system in the world. ORC can rate everything from Sportboats to Superyachts, and announced for 2020 will also offer a new standard ORC DH (Double Handed) certificate for those who want to challenge themselves in this growing sector of the sport.

The ORCsy rule for Superyachts has also made significant progress, offering even more scoring options in 2020 to further refine competitive racing among these magnificent yachts.

And finally the ORC Multihull rule (ORCmh) has also made progress in its complex development and is expected to have its first certificates issued for offshore multihulls in 2020.

It is perhaps appropriate that in this 50th year since its formation, the ORC has also been working with the other International-recognized rating system - RORC's IRC rule - to plan the upcoming 2020 ORC/IRC World Championship being held in Newport USA at the New York Yacht Club. At the Annual Meeting it was reported there is excellent technical cooperation between the two rule systems to create common measurement standards, and there is confidence and encouragement for further close cooperation in the future.

Bid proposals for future ORC championship events remains strong, and approved for the 2021 ORC World Championship is the Kalev Yacht Club in Talinn, Estonia.

Technical developments for the ORC system include improvements to the Velocity Prediction Program (VPP) to accommodate new features such as immersed foils that are appearing with more frequency on offshore yachts.

"This organization has withstood many technical and political challenges over 50 years," said ORC Chairman Bruno Finzi. "Yet we are healthier than ever, thanks to the hard work by our dedicated committee members, the staff, and an improved relationship with World Sailing. All have kept this organization efficient and relevant to the changing trends of the sport to keep the racing fair, fun and competitive."

In particular, we look forward to working with World Sailing and the MNA's who are interested in learning more about the performance and handicapping of boats who are raced in Double Handed trim so to help promote the new Olympic medal discipline."

Minutes of the ORC Committee meetings are available at www.orc.org/meetings.

Related Articles

Big colour displays
Which would you prefer? A+T Instruments will be at the Monaco Boat Show and at the Les voiles de Saint-Tropez. Hugh will be navigating on SY Sealen B, and Pete will be navigating on SY Mariella. Posted on 18 Sep
Three new ORC Pacific Coast Champions crowned
22 teams from the US and Australia raced diverse designs at the Rolex Big Boat Series With a three-hour-long Bay Tour race as the final test for competitors, the 61st edition of the Rolex Big Boat Series hosted by St. Francis Yacht Club came to a stunning close yesterday afternoon. Posted on 15 Sep
61st Rolex Big Boat Series at San Francisco
The event came to a stunning close on Sunday afternoon With a three-hour-long Bay Tour race as the final test for competitors, the 61st edition of the Rolex Big Boat Series hosted by St. Francis Yacht Club came to a stunning close on Sunday afternoon. Posted on 15 Sep
2025 ORC Double-Handed Worlds concludes
Mia Gioia, Colombre and Altissimus are the new champions in Monfalcone Fifty-five teams representing ten nations gathered in the Gulf of Trieste this week for the ORC Double-Handed World Championship 2025, hosted by Yacht Club Monfalcone at Marina Monfalcone in collaboration with the Offshore Racing Congress (ORC). Posted on 13 Sep
10 days till close of Sail Paradise 2025 entries
A fresh onslaught of new arrivals in the 40ft+ range set to challenge defending champion A fresh onslaught of new boat acquisitions and arrivals in the 40ft+ range is set to really test defending champion Glenn Burrell and his RP42 Black Diamond crew this year, with rumours swirling of more to come. Posted on 11 Sep
Pittwater Sail Expo 2025 set for October
From racing to cruising, Australia's biggest sailing showcase The Pittwater Sail Expo 2025 will take place from Friday 24 to Sunday 26 October at the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club (RPAYC), Newport, and promises to be the biggest sailing only showcase in the country. Posted on 11 Sep
Rolex Big Boat Series starts Thursday
Built on Tradition, Powered by Innovation The waters of San Francisco Bay are set to come alive with four action-packed days of racing at the 61st edition of the Rolex Big Boat Series, Thursday, September 11, through Sunday, September 14. Posted on 11 Sep
4th ORC Double-Handed Worlds opening day
Heavy rain, poor visibility, and unstable winds forced organisers to cancel the Short Offshore Race The opening race of the ORC Double-Handed Worlds 2025, hosted by YC Monfalcone in collaboration with the Offshore Racing Congress (ORC) and held at Marina Monfalcone, was abandoned today due to severe weather conditions in the Northern Adriatic. Posted on 10 Sep
4th ORC Double-Handed Worlds kicks off
57 teams set to race across Italian, Slovenian, and Croatian Waters The northern gateway to the Mediterranean, Monfalcone has come alive with international offshore racing talent as the 4th edition of the ORC Double-Handed World Championship officially gets under way. Posted on 8 Sep
From vision to reality
The XR 41's journey from sketch to World Champion In 2023 I took part in my first X-Yachts Gold Cup at Aarhus in Denmark. It was a glorious event, balancing fun and competition perfectly, and was a weekend where new friendships were formed with sailors who I continue to chat with regularly. Posted on 2 Sep