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Rolex Middle Sea Race all set to kick off
37th edition of the Rolex Middle Sea Race will kick off at noon, 112 yachts from 25 countries expected to take part.
Yachts gather at the Grand Harbour ahead of the Rolex Middle Sea Race. Photo: Chris Mangion
This is the 37th edition of the Rolex Middle Sea Race. Photo: Chris Mangion
Yachts have gathered at the Grand Harbour ahead of the 37th edition of the Rolex Middle Sea Race, that is set to kick off at noon.
112 yachts from 25 countries are expected to compete in this year’s race, including eight teams flying the Maltese Flag. Among the visiting yachts are three of the world’s fastest ocean-going sailing yachts – George David’s American Maxi Rambler, Giovanni Soldini’s Italian MOD70 Maserati, and Lloyd Thornburg’s American MOD70 Phaedo3.
An Italian yacht docked at the Grand Harbour ahead of the Middle Sea Race. Photo: Chris Mangion
A Swedish yacht prepares for the Rolex Middle Sea Race. Photo: Chris Mangion
The race course is 608 nautical miles long and starts and ends from the Grand Harbour beneath For St Angelo and the Saluting Battery in Valletta. It then proceeds north along the east coast of Sicily and up towards the Straits of Messina. It then leads north towards the Aeolian Islands, west to the Egadi Islands, and south towards the islands of Pantelleria and Lampedusa, before ending at Marsamxett Harbout.
The record to finish the race is one day, 23 hours, 55 minutes, and three seconds – set by the yacht ‘Rambler’ in 2007.
