SMMR - Newsletter #7 by MaxComm Communication

Friday 20, april | # 7

Dear supporters, partners and friends,

elcome to St. Moritz Match Race’s Newsletter. In this edition we tell you all – well, all we know so far – about this summer’s participants in St. Moritz Match Race. We look back at the event’s history with one of its past winners, Paolo Cian. We also listen to the memories of Franco Rizzoli, one of the event’s most faithful helper, involved since day one. Last but not least, we discover the newly created hospitality packages offered to our guests – and why not you – this summer. We hope you enjoy reading this Newsletter and wish you a pleasant spring.

May 23-28

Match Race Germany - Langenargen

May 29 - June 3

Korea Match Cup - Gyeonggi-do

July 2-7

Match Cup Sweden - Marstrand

July 10-15

Chicago Match Cup - Chicago

July 24-29

Portugal Match Cup - Portimao

August 28 - September 2

St. Moritz Match Race - St. Moritz

September 24-29

Match Race France

October 1-7

Argo Group Gold Cup - Hamilton

December 4-9

Monsoon Cup - Kuala Terengganu

St. Moritz Match Race Newsletter #7

World Match Race Tour 2012 cardholders: an interesting lineup The Alpari World Match Racing Tour has revised its Card Holder policy for 2012, and nine world class sailors have been granted access to the circuit, including St. Moritz Match Race. All card holders will now receive automatic invites to 5 events (instead of 6) with their best 4 results (instead of best 5) counting towards the annual championship, plus the points they score at the final event, the Monsoon Cup. Meanwhile, nonTour Card Holders will accumulate points towards their Championship quest from their first 4 events. Ian Williams (GBR) and Peter Gilmour (AUS) are the big names in the list, followed by three sailors well known in St. Moritz: Pierre-Antoine Morvan (FRA), brilliant second last year, Phil Robertson (AUS), and Bjorn Hansen (SWE). The other card holders are new and it will be interesting to see how they perform during their first season at the top. They are called Simone Ferrarese (ITA), Laurie Jury (NZL) and Keith Swinton (AUS). While relatively inexperienced compared to the likes of reigning Champion Williams and Gilmour – with seven World Championships between them – they can take a few big scalps and, why not, win some events. The logical favourite for the 2012 title is Ian Williams, who has been sailing at the top for a decade and is universally recognised as a huge talent. Winner of two events in 2011, Williams then went on to win the

Monsoon Cup and his third ISAF Match Racing World Championship. Time will tell if Williams can continue his winning form, if Gilmour, Berntsson and Hansen can bring more consistency to their racing and if these new Tour Card Holders can create a few upsets. The Alpari World Match Race Tour will begin on May 24 with Match Race Germany.

WMRT card holders: Johnie Berntsson Simone Ferrarese Peter Gilmour Bjorn Hansen Laurie Jury Pierre-Antoine Morvan Phil Robertson Keith Swinton Ian Williams

SWE ITA AUS SWE NZL FRA NZL AUS GBR

Berntsson Sailing Team Ferrarese Racing Team YANMAR Racing Mekonomen Sailing Team Zoke Kiwi Match Extreme Team Morbihan WAKA Racing Black Swan Racing Team GAC Pindar

St. Moritz Match Race Newsletter #7

Testimony: Paolo Cian remembers

Paolo Cian, from Italy, won St. Moritz Match Race in 2006. His victory was memorable – at least for him – because he won the final by beating Team Alinghi, skippered by Ed Baird. He remembers:

SMMR: Paolo, what were you expecting when you got invited to St. Moritz for the first time? Paolo Cian: “ I was expecting thrilling “ high mountain sailing!!” SMMR: Did you find what you were expecting? Paolo Cian: “ In fact we found much more: a great and warm hospitality, a lot of fun and an incredible lineup...”

SMMR: What is your worse memory from the event? Paolo Cian: “ It was absolutely freezing cold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” SMMR: And your best memory? Paolo Cian: “ Well, it is what we named the “ ALINGHI STRIKE ”: We had the honour to defeat in a row, Peter “ the killer” Holmberg in the quarter finals, Professor Jochen Schueman in the semi-final and... the young and talented Eddye Baird in the final!!!!! SIMPLY UNFORGETTABLE!!!!!!” SMMR: What makes St. Moritz Match Race special and different from other event? Paolo Cian: “ The kind and super-warm hospitality from the people in St. Moritz, the fact of staying in one of the most famous hotels in the world, the double trapeezed boats that were used at the time and the grand stand for the public, located just on the starting/finishing line.” SMMR: Any specific memory? Paolo Cian: “ It was my first victory in the WMRT at the end of a fantastic week. I celebrated it with a back-flip into the freezing lake St. Moritz. It was the first back flip of a series and… who knows: maybe I’ll do it again. :))”

www.facebook.com/stmoritzmatchrace

St. Moritz Match Race and Engadin St. Moritz propose for the first time unique and exclusive hospitality packages valid for individual visitors, families and friends. Here’s the deal: you join us in St. Moritz on Wednesday 29 and/or Thursday 30 August and you get full access to the event for CHF 180.-, including seats in the grand stand, possibility to follow the team’s official briefing and meet the world’s best sailors. You also enjoy a VIP two course lunch served by Badrutts Palace

Hospitality program: Why not you? and even get the opportunity to ride around the lake on our partner Flyer’s electric bicycles. Last but not least, we offer specific deals to St. Moritz match race’s followers in some of the nicest hotels in town. This package will be detailed online in the coming days at: http://www.engadin. stmoritz.ch/sommer/de/ pauschalenliste/ Over the coming month this offer will also be detailed on the events website as well as in a swiss sailing magazine.

Furthermore, some free tickets will be drawn on several occasions; don’t miss this opportunity! The hospitality offers for Friday, Saturday and Sunday remain the same as in the past years. Please feel free to contact

us for more information about the hospitality opportunities in general. Annalis Suter and Beryl Pieper: info@stmoritzmatchrace.ch

St. Moritz Match Race Newsletter #7

Franco Rizzoli: Ten years of loyalty and fun with St. Moritz Match Race Franco Rizzoli is one of the event’s most familiar faces. Involved since day one, he is a member of the Race Committee, in charge of the official flags and also driving the Race Committee boat when necessary. “ I am an active sailor, a member of St. Moritz Yacht Club and I have been running other yacht racing events for many years. So when St. Moritz Match Race began, I became quite naturally involved”, he says.

And what about the pressure; is it tough to organise an event for sailing’s superstars? “ Not at all”, he declares. “There is no space for pressure if you are well organised. Of course, there are difficult moments, especially by light wind, when we must decide to start a race or not. Will it be a good race, will it be fair? We must get it right, but I don’t see this as pressure; it’s a matter of experience. For me, the most important thing is that we are in one of the most beautiful places in the world, it is usually windy and the sailors are the best in the world. If you put all of this together, then you see that it is just simply fantastic.”

Needless to say that in ten years, Franco has seen an incredible number of hot and exiting situations: “ It’s true, he laughs. And it is our privilege: We are at the heart of the action and we can see everything happening just in front of us. On the other hand, we spend hours and hours on the lake, sometimes under the snow or the rain. But this doesn’t disturb me. As a sailor, I believe that there is no such thing as bad weather. The nature decides and we must adapt. It’s our job to get well dressed and make the best out of the situation in order to organise fair races.”

Franco Rizzoli considers himself as privileged to have seen such a high number of top level races and sailors. “ During a single day, we organise up to thirty matches”, he says. “ It is therefore impossible to mention one specific match. But some sailors have really impressed me. Ian Williams, for example, has a superb style. I also appreciate Francesco Bruni very much: he has a lot of temperament. And Peter Gilmour, Jochen Schuemann, Ed Baird… There are so many!”

Contacts Media & Communication MaxComm Communication Tel: +41 22 735 55 30 www.maxcomm.ch

Bernard SCHOPFER bernard.schopfer@maxcomm.ch M: +41 79 332 11 76

St. Moritz Match Race Match Race Schweiz AG Bergstrasse 23 8953 Dietikon

T: +41 44 745 72 00 info@stmoritz-matchrace.ch

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