Black Jack 100 claims 4th consecutive line honours at 46th Rolex Middle Sea Race
by Bart Salemans 21 Oct 2025 14:22 BST
Black Jack 100 claims 4th consecutive line honours at 46th Rolex Middle Sea Race © Kurt Arrigo / Rolex
After a challenging 606-nautical-mile circuit around Sicily, Black Jack 100 crossed the finish line as the first monohull in the 46th Rolex Middle Sea Race.
Skipper Tristan Le Brun and co-skipper Jelmer van Beek guided the 100-foot maxi to victory on 21 October 2025 at 05:44:07, recording an elapsed time of 2 days, 17 hours, 44 minutes, and 7 seconds. This marks the fourth consecutive line honours win of the season for the owner's team, following their successes in the Round Gotland Race, Rolex Fastnet Race, and Palermo-Montecarlo Regatta..
Le Brun reflected on the achievement: "We worked hard on both the boat and the team ahead of this season to be at our best. With this victory, we secure our fourth consecutive line honours in the fourth race of the year. We can certainly say that our mission for this season has been accomplished."
Co-skipper Van Beek added: "This may not have been the most spectacular race of the season. We never saw more than 15 knots of wind, and the final stretch was particularly light. But we achieved what we came for: a flawless season. It feels great to finish it like this."
Looking ahead, Le Brun commented: "Next season, we will have a slightly different schedule with new challenges, so we are definitely not done yet. We will start the 2026 season in February at the RORC Caribbean 600"
The Black Jack 100 crew consisted of Remon Vos, Tristan Le Brun, Alex Nolan, Andrew Henderson, Bram van Spengen, Bruce Clark, Clément Cron, Guillaume Berenger, Harley Spreadbury-Key, Jelmer Van Beek, Jorden Van Rooijen, Matiu Te Hau, Robin Jacobs, Rokas Milevicius, Romain Testa, Rutger Vos, Shane Hughes, Sofian Bouvet, and Thierry Fouchier.