12mR World Championship at Yacht Club de Porquerolles Overall
by Soazig Guého 22 Jun 15:11 BST
17-23 June 2024
Kookaburra II (KA12) World Champion - 12mR World Championship Porquerolles Day 5 © Gilles Martin-Raget / YCP
The end of the 12mR World Championship in Porquerolles. On this final day, a strong mistral wind (22-36 knots) is blowing across the harbour of Hyères. Due to these conditions, the race committee decided this morning not to launch the race.
The 2024 12mR World Championship organised by the Yacht Club de Porquerolles has been validated, with six races contested.
The 12mR World Champions are:
Group 1: Kookaburra II (KA12)
Group 2: Northern Light (US14)
A clear round for Kookaburra II (KA12)
Kookabura II (KA12) owne of Italian Patrizio Bertelli and skippered by Brazil's Torben Grael dominated the world championship, winning all the races contested.
Kiwi Magic (KZ) and French Kiss (F7) completed the podium.
Torben Grael, skipper of Kookabura II (KA12): "This victory is really good, it's the result of a lot of hard work by the team, we prepared ourselves well, we had good sails, a big thank you to Mr Bertelli for the work that was done and for the great crew he put together. It was great to sail with my friend Santi (Santigo Lange) for the first time, my good friend Marcelo (Marcelo Ferreira) who has been my crew member for 25 years and my son too, it was a great experience for me.
The island of Porquerolles is magnificent, it's a great place to sail and we've had a week with lots of wind, perfect conditions for the 12mR World Championship."
On the vintage side, the battle was intense, and it was Hans Eliasson's Northern Light (US14) that took the 2024 12mR World Championship title. Jenetta (K1) and Nini Anker (N15) came second and third respectively.
Hans Eliasson, owner of Northern Light (US14): "We're very proud to be world champions, it's great! When we bought the boat five years ago, our aim was to win the 2024 world championship and that's been achieved here in Porquerolles, so we're really pleased."
A great success for the Yacht Club de Porquerolles
With four races organised in less than two months: the Porquerolle's Race, the Porquerolle's Cup, the Porquerolle's Classic and the 12mR World Championship, the Yacht Club de Porquerolles has once again demonstrated its expertise and dynamism in organising international events.
Created in 1986, the Yacht Club de Porquerolles enjoys a magnificent stretch of water where everyone loves to come and race. Both at sea and on land, smiles, friendliness and good spirit are in the DNA of the Yacht Club de Porquerolles.
Aurélie Lhuillier, Director of the Yacht Club de Porquerolles: "The Yacht Club de Porquerolles is very proud to have hosted the 12mR World Championship. The field was exceptional, with the presence of some legendary sailors. The races were intense, with difficult weather conditions for everyone. A great season of events is coming to an end. I'd like to thank all the Yacht Club teams who worked so hard on all the events for the 2024 season. We're very lucky to have such an outstanding team of volunteers at the club - nothing would be possible without them!
I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank our partner SFA, who has shown their confidence in us and supported this event right from the start."
The next event for the 12mR boats in the 55th Coupe de France organised by the Yacht Club de France will be in Barcelona from 4 to 7 September.
Full results can be found here.
More information at yachtclubporquerolles.fr