A Riveting Start to the 2024 Contender World Championships at the Exquisite Pensacola Yacht Club

The Contender World Championships 2024, despite the nomenclature, launched in 2025 at the Pensacola Yacht Club. The North American air filled with electric anticipation, as this marked the first championship event being hosted on the continent after nearly a decade.

Their preceding pre-event, the US National Championship also held at Pensacola, saw European sailors display an imperious form. The national event was dominated by Denmark’s Søren Dulong Andreason, threading through the water like Poseidon himself. Hot on his heels were sailing masters, Italy’s Antonio Lambartini and the Netherlands’ Paul Verhallen. These performance served as a tantalising prelude for what laid ahead.

It was in the second race, however, where Antonio Lambartini snatched victory, strategically maneuvering into a right-hand lane to gain the lead. Simon Mussell pursued closely, landing second followed by Graeme Wilcox. This victorious feat placed Simon Mussell as the event leader heading into Day 2, with a tantalising forecast of increased breeze.

While relative positions on the scoreboards ascended and descended, the underlying spirit of camaraderie and sportsmanship soared high among the sailors. With Britain’s Mussell leading the fleet, fair winds promise a continued spectacle of nerve and skill in the captivating landscape of Pensacola – a grand testament to the bewitching allure of sailing.