The 5th Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series of monthly regattas from October to March ended March 11. Organized by the Yacht Club de Monaco, in collaboration with technical clothing supplier SLAM, the meetings offer international teams an opportunity to establish their winter base in the Principality before the main season starts. Monaco attracts talent from all walks of life as evidenced by the 260-plus sailors from 11 nationalities on 180 boats, who descended on Monaco over the winter to compete in a total of 58 races. Like a diesel engine, the Russian team tempered their starts, remaining in contact with the fleet without ever taking the lead at the start of a race. Led by the talented Valeria Kovalenko, the boat obeys a golden rule: don’t take anything for granted until the finish line. Constantly alert, eyes riveted on their opponents and the course, the team is like a well-oiled machine, nibbling away at the meters with each maneuver. At 1.6m tall, Valeria Kovalenko strikes an imposing figure and has certainly set the bar high as the indisputable queen of the Monaco race area, winning all Acts in this 5th edition to bag the series by a clear 84 points. He said, “I want to thank my crew from the bottom of my heart for helping me win here in Monaco, and the YCM whose superb facilities are ideal for organizing this type of event.” Stefano Roberti (Piccinina) came in a well-deserved second, an enormous satisfaction for the YCM sailor. “I am really delighted with this result which I owe to my team,” he said. The Italian Germano Scarpa (Sport Cube) completed the podium in third. Results for this final Act remained almost unchanged, with Art Tube topping the ranking, ahead of Alice followed by the Swiss on Cde.Ch. The J/70 Class remains very dynamic in the Principality with 20 boats flying the YCM burgee, and an eye to the future.: “In 2021, we will be hosting the J/70 World Championship,” announced Monaco Class President Michel Boussard, who continues the work already put in. “From today till the event, we will continue to organize regattas, training sessions and clinics run by professionals in order to be ready.” In the Corinthian category, competitors pulled out all the stops and managed to upset some of the best teams. The Swiss on Quarter2Eleven won this regatta and finished fourth in the overall ranking all categories combined. Rémi Piazza, a young sailor from the Sports Section made excellent progress and is now a loyal fan of the Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series. He won the season in the amateur category with a team comprising all YCM sailors.
J/70 – Final ranking – Act 5
1st: Valeria Kovalenko – RUS (Art Tube) – 7 points
2nd: Federico Leproux – ITA (Alice) – 15 points
3rd: Jean-Marc Monnand – SUI (CdE.Ch) – 23 points
J/70 – Final ranking – 2017/2018 season
1st: Valeria Kovalenko – RUS (Art Tube) – 33 points
2nd: Stefano Roberti – MON (Piccinina) – 117 points
3rd: Germano Scarpa – ITA (Sport Cube) – 148 points
J/70 – Final ranking – Act 5 – Corinthian
1st: Alain Stettler– SUI (Quarter2Eleven) – 29 points
2nd: Thomas Studer – SUI (Jerry) – 30 points
3rd: Mario Rabbio – ITA (Caim2) – 38 points
J/70 – Final ranking – 2017/2018 season – Corinthian
1st: Remi Piazza – MON (Levante) – 344 points
2nd: Pawel Tarnowski – POL (Apotex) – 372 points
3rd: Loïc Pompée – MON (Allo 3) – 375 points
For complete details, visit www.ycm.org.