LA SUPERBA Five-peats J/24 COPPA ITALIA!

(Nettuno, Rome, Italy)- With a trio of victories and a second place for the series, the Italian Navy's Ignazio Bonnano sailed their famous ITA 416 LA SUPERBA to victory in the COPPA ITALIA J/24 off Nettuno, south of Rome along the Mediterranean coastline. Bonanno’s crew included Simone Scontrino, Francesco Linares and Vincenzo Vano. Hosting the event was the Nettuno Yacht Club and the Circolo of Vela Anzio Tirrena, with the technical and logistic collaboration of the Marina di Nettuno, the Circolo Canottieri Nettuno and the Italian Class J/24 and the sponsor support of Margutta Che Frutta!, Life Soup, Bontà Verde Agroama and Mille Gomme.

Taking the silver medal was Luca Silvestri and his ITA 458 team on ENJOY TWO. Then, sitting in third, just one point from the second, was Massimo Mariotti's ITA 502 AVOLTORE.

After the first four National Regattas (Marina di Carrara, Mandello del Lario, Cervia, & Nettuno), Bonanno’s LA SUPERBA is leading with Pietro Diamanti's JAMAICA team in second.  Eleven J/24s have competed so far in the four-event series. 


"Maximum attention was paid to the provisions on containing the spread of Covid-19, thanks also to the active collaboration of the Port Authority and the naval sector of the Guardia di Finanza, who were present and available for every need," explained Valerio Taveri of Nettuno Yacht Club. The President of the Marina di Nettuno- Ugo Lori, the NYC President- Mariano Manenti, and the CVAT President- Andrea Sanzone, strongly wanted to host this edition of the Coppa Italia. The Race Committee was composed of Costanzo Villa, Livia Serafini, Emanuela Proietti, Enrico Ragno, very willing to participate in the event, despite the period we are going through. We also wish to extend our heartfelt thanks to the Anzio Maritime District Office and the brilliant assistance of the Maritime Finance."

The final regatta of the Italian National J/24 series will be held on November 14th and 15th. Thanks for this contribution from Italian J/24 Class secretary Paola Zanoni.  For more Italian J/24 Class sailing informationAdd to Flipboard Magazine.

LA SUPERBA Leads Italian J/24 Winter Series

AMERICAN PASSAGE Leading the Lozzi Trophy
(Anzio & Nettuno, Rome, Italy)- With two beautiful days of sailing with moderate breezes, the Roman J/24 fleet enjoyed great racing on the Gulf of Anzio southwest of Rome.  The fleet was sailing for the Lozzi Trophy on Saturday and the Anzio & Nettuno Winter Series on Sunday.

Shifty Saturday @ Lozzi Trophy
Saturday’s sailing was marked by partly cloudy skies, plenty of sun, and very shifty offshore winds for the ten-boat fleet.  Three races were completed by the end of the day. Victories went to ITA 458 ENJOY 2 sailed by Luca Silvestri, ITA 487 AMERICAN PASSAGE skippered by Paolo Rinaldi and to ITA 36 FLETCHER LYN sailed by Stefano Renoglio.

As a result of Saturday’s racing, leading after six races in the overall Lozzi Trophy standings is AMERICAN PASSAGE with a 4-3-1-2-1-2 scoreline for 9 pts.  The balance of the top three overall includes ENJOY 2 in second with scores of 3-2-2-1-2-4 for 10 pts and, in third place, is FLETCHER LYNN with a tally of 2-5-3-5-5-1 for 16 pts.

Pretty Sunday for Winter Series
The second day of sailing produced three more races for the twenty-one J/24s on the Gulf of Anzio.  The day started off spectacularly, but menacing black clouds loomed on the horizon as the fleet, again, sailed in easterly winds of 10-13 kts.

Winners on Sunday were determined by who completed the podium behind the domination of ITA 416 LA SUPERBA; their performance was unstoppable, posting three straight bullets! Skipper Ignazio Bonanno from the Italian Navy and his crew of Vincenzo Vano, Francesco Picaro, Alfredo Branciforte and Francesco Linares were delighted with the outcome, further lengthening their already insurmountable lead in the overall Winter Series- now counting 9 bullets!

In the first race, behind LA SUPERBA was ITA 428 PELLE ROSSA sailed by Gianni Riccobono and ITA 447 PELLE NERA helmed by Paolo Cecamore, second and third, respectively.  In the following race, it was AMERICAN PASSAGE and ENJOY 2 in 2nd and 3rd.

After ten races in the overall Winter Series, LA SUPERBA continues to lead by a substantial margin. However, the balance of the podium is currently tied between two boats at 43 pts each; ITA 385 J ARMED JUDGE (Riccardo Aleandri, Antimo Bruno, Fulvio Marchionni, Fabio Di Bartolomeo, Vito Esposito and Fabiana Onori) and Luca Silvestri’s ENJOY 2.

Sunday ended with the traditional pasta and wine party on the terrace of the Circolo Della Vela, a celebration greatly appreciated by all twenty-one teams!  For more Italian J/24 Class sailing information Add to Flipboard Magazine.

LA SUPERBA Crowned Winter J/24 Champion

(Anzio & Nettuno (Rome), Italy)- This past weekend, the fiercely competitive J/24 Fleet of Rome had a regatta full of fun and lots of racing (eight races in total!) The fleet of twenty-two boats was sailing in their 44th Winter Championship of Anzio-Nettuno, racing for the Lozzi Trophy.  Winning the regatta was the famous Italian Navy crew on LA SUPERBA, skippered by Ignazio Bonanno with crew of Vincenzo Vano, Francesco Picaro, Alfredo Branciforte, and Francesco Linares; they dominated the regatta with six 1sts and two 4ths.

“On Saturday, a mistral of 22 knots and a flat sea provided the sailors fabulous conditions for racing,” explained Federico Miccio. “The crews did not seem at all intimidated by the strong wind and, indeed, had fun sailing three demanding races on the first day."

"On the following day, the scenario was decidedly different. The light wind between 4 and 5 knots oscillated between the Levante and the Sirocco, and then stabilized at Ostro. This allowed the Race Committee to start the racing,” explained Miccio. “A large part of the fleet chose the left-hand side, while the wind was shifting to the right, and very spotty along the race course. It was a challenging day for us and the rest of the fleet.”

After eight races and two discards, is was Bonanno’s LA SUPERBA crew that eclipsed the fleet with blistering pace and very sharp tactics and boathandling.  Taking second place was the young crew on J-GIUDITTA, skippered by Riccardo Aleandri, Antimo Bruno on tactics, Fulvio Marchionni on bow, and Fabio Di Bartolomeo, Vito Esposito, & Fabiana Onori in the middle. Closing out the podium was Paolo Cecamore’s PELLE NERA.  Rounding out the top five were Michele Potenza’s ARPION (also top woman helm) in fourth position and Massimo Mariotti’s AVOLTORE in fifth place.  For more Italian J/24 class sailing information Add to Flipboard Magazine.