Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) Articles
This race is never simply about the fastest boat. It is about average speed, reliability, mental stamina, and the ability to keep a boat moving when the ocean tries its hardest to slow you down. And in this edition, four standout offshore machines have emerged as the early favourites for the coveted RORC Transatlantic Race Trophy under IRC:
NeoJivaro – Neo 430 – Yves Grosjean Ino Noir – Carkeek 45 – James Neville Maxitude – Lift 45 – Xavier & Alexandre Bellouard Palanad 4 – Manuard 50 – Antoine Magre Together, they represent the cutting edge of offshore yacht design: scow-bowed rockets, feather-light carbon platforms, and crews built to endure the Atlantic’s moods — from light-air drift battles to full-bore surfing in the trades.
© Sailing Energy/Calero Marinas
Four designs. One ocean. Endless ambition — the RORC Transatlantic Race delivers a masterclass in speed, stamina, and seamanship
20-12-2026
In classic east-coast conditions, Comanche powered her way up the NSW coastline and back, completing the 172-nautical-mile course in a provisional 14hrs 34mins 21secs. The final two miles, however, offered the sort of maddening calm that only ocean racing can produce — glassy water, postcard sunrise, absolutely zero wind. Comanche ghosted across the line, sails hanging limp but boat speed still good enough to secure another clinical Line Honours win.
28-12-2025
Fifty Years Around Britain: The 2026 RORC Round Britain & Ireland Race Announces Start Date and Open Entry
An epic 1,805-mile circumnavigation returns — tougher, older, and more legendary than ever.
10-12-2025
In the 2025 revival of the Admiral’s Cup—one of sailing’s most prestigious and storied international events—it was the twin-sailed warhorses of the Yacht Club de Monaco that seized the moment. At the heart of this historic campaign was Jolt—or more precisely, Jolt 3 and Jolt 6—a two-boat arsenal that fired on all cylinders and carried Monaco to its first-ever Admiral’s Cup triumph.
27-11-2025
After the roar of sails and the thunder of applause that marked the triumphant comeback of the Admiral’s Cup in 2025, the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) has wasted no time in charting the course for the next chapter of offshore sailing’s most storied contest. The Club today confirmed that the 2027 Admiral’s Cup will run from 15–30 July, a full fortnight of world-class racing that promises to carry forward the magic, momentum, and sheer theatre of the 2025 revival.
27-11-2025
The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) has confirmed that the Admiral’s Cup – long regarded as the pinnacle of international offshore team racing – will officially return in 2027. The announcement follows the spectacular 2025 comeback, which ended a 22-year absence and reignited one of sailing’s most prestigious competitions.
26-11-2025
The RORC Transatlantic Race in association with the International Maxi Association and the Yacht Club de France will set sail from Marina Lanzarote on 11 January 2026.
06-09-2025
## A Principality Crowned: Monaco Wins the 2025 Admiral’s Cup
The revived Admiral’s Cup, long considered the unofficial world championship of offshore sailing, returned in 2025 after a 22‑year absence. And in a watershed moment, the Yacht Club de Monaco (YCM)—making its very first appearance—secretly emerged as the 2025 Admiral’s Cup champions. Monaco’s debut was nothing short of sensational, combining precision sailing with strategic mastery across inshore Solent races, a demanding Channel leg, and a nail‑biting Rolex Fastnet Race finale. Runner‑up on the podium was the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, with Italy’s Yacht Club Costa Smeralda claiming third
05-08-2025
CHERBOURG, July 2025 — The rain eased and the rum bottles emptied as dawn broke over Port Chantereyne, Cherbourg. The tension, the tides, and the spinnakers finally settled after one of the closest Admiral’s Cup battles in decades, with Peter Harrison and Monaco’s own Pierre Casiraghi leading Team Jolt to a dramatic win aboard their TP52 Jolt 3 and the Carkeek 40 Jolt 6. Ten points clear of Karl Kwok’s ever-formidable Beau Geste, the Royal Thames lads (with help from the Yacht Club de Monaco) stood tallest after a week of ferocious racing.
02-08-2025
The Rolex Admiral’s Cup fleet spent a wild second night offshore, taking on the long, punishing beat through the Celtic Sea. The wind wasn’t ferocious, but the sea state was—big Atlantic swell, relentless chop, and a hard-earned haul towards one of offshore racing’s most iconic landmarks: the Fastnet Rock. Standing 54 metres tall, forged from Cornish granite, the lighthouse marks more than just a turning point in the Rolex Fastnet Race. In its 100th edition, it’s a century-old beacon of salt, grit, and glory.
01-08-2025
Rolex Fastnet Race | Admiral’s Cup Dispatch – July 2025
There’s a new name at the top—and it’s flying the Dutch tricolour. The young guns aboard ROST Van Uden (RMYC) have clawed their way into the AC1 lead on corrected time, and they’ve done it with nerve, timing, and a whole lot of boat speed. With 150nm to go, they’re three hours ahead after IRC correction and showing no sign of blinking.
01-08-2025
Its started on Saturday 26 July 2025
Veterans of the last two Rolex Fastnet Races are checking the weather with cautious optimism. After two editions that opened with 30-knot headwinds and a battering Channel slog, the long-range forecast for this centenary running looks — dare we say it — gentle.
31-07-2025
After the cannon roared, the fleet scattered like gulls in a gale. Black Pearl (YCCS), skippered by Stefan Jentzch, wasted no time — tacking straight toward the mainland shore. She sniffed out a lift and took it like a thief in the night, gaining ground fast. But out near the island side, Jolt 3 (YCM) helmed by Peter Harrison, was all business — early leader on the water and staying sticky to the fleet like barnacles on a buoy.
30-07-2025
As the Admiral’s Cup fleet thundered west toward Start Point, the gloves were off and the tactics got real. The leaders split north of the rhumb line—Black Pearl taking the high road, while Eric de Turckheim’s Teasing Machine dug in low and fast to the south. Black Pearl rounded Start Point with a boat length to spare over Jolt 3, both storming along at nine knots. Slightly offshore, Rán and Teasing Machine were pushing harder, notching up close to ten.
29-07-2025
The Admiral’s Cup roared to life with a deceptively light start — and then reminded everyone why it’s earned its legend. The 160nm Channel Race looked tame leaving the Solent, but by sunrise the next day, the fleet limped back soaked to the skin, eyes red and salt-blasted. A confused sea, building pressure topping 25 knots, and a foaming downwind leg back from France — it was a full-pelt Atlantic slap in the face. The final reach to the finish? A screecher, with kites straining and helms gritted.
24-07-2025
Its starts on Saturday 26 July 2025
Veterans of the last two Rolex Fastnet Races are checking the weather with cautious optimism. After two editions that opened with 30-knot headwinds and a battering Channel slog, the long-range forecast for this centenary running looks — dare we say it — gentle.
24-07-2025
Wouldn’t be the first time a Jean-Pierre Kelbert design came in sideways and stole the silverware. His initials are stamped on the transom — literally — and his boats have a reputation for upsetting the pecking order in offshore racing. The 34-foot JPK 1050 might just be the sharpest new weapon in a fleet of 73, and it’s already shown a flash of brilliance.
20-07-2025
Revived by the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) for its centenary year and to be held biennially thereafter, the 2025 edition promises high-performance racing, intense offshore challenges, and a celebration of sailing heritage.
18-07-2025
The Admiral’s Cup returns to Cowes from 17 July to 1 August 2025, reviving offshore sailing’s iconic team race. National teams will compete in inshore and offshore events, celebrating Corinthian spirit, tradition, and global competition on the Solent.
17-07-2025
Less than two months now remain until the start of the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race, this year coinciding with the Royal Ocean Racing Club's centenary. Another huge fleet has entered. While 2023’s 50th edition of the event, that back in 1925 caused the RORC to be founded, saw a record 430 boats set sail, the 2025 entry list indicates that even this figure may be exceeded when the race starts from Cowes on 26 July, bound for Cherbourg-en-Cotentin via the famous Fastnet Rock off southwest Ireland.
03-06-2025
Giovanni Lombardi Stronati has entered two boats for the 2025 Admiral’s Cup that will be competing under the burgee of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS). The YCCS team will consist of a brand new design, the Wallyrocket 51 for the big boat. The small boat will be a JPK 1180. Both boats are called Django.
30-05-2025
The Admiral’s Cup stands as one of the most storied and prestigious events in the world of offshore yacht racing, a competition that has long been regarded as the unofficial world championship of the sport.
28-05-2025