It’s on! Gold Cup returns

The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club and Argo Group have set the dates for the 2014 Argo Group Gold Cup sailed for the King Edward VII Gold Cup Trophy and a $100,000 prize purse. 

The penultimate event of the Alpari World Match Racing Tour will start October 21 in Hamilton Harbour.

Twenty teams will enter the fray with only two reaching the final match on Sunday, October 26. 

After the finals, the last team standing will put its name on the coveted King Edward VII Gold Cup and take the $50,000 winner’s check at the prizegiving on the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club terrace. 

This year will mark the 64th staging of races for the trophy, with previous winners including some of the greatest names ever to match race. 

Since the event was reformatted to be an event under the Match Racing Association in 1985, multiple winners include Chris Dickson (NZL), Russell Coutts (NZL), Peter Gilmour (AUS), and Ben Ainslie (GBR). The 2013 Defending champion is Francesco Bruni (ITL).

The overall Tour has gone from strength to strength in recent years and the teams will share $1.4 million in prize money over the course of the season.

This year it will feature a new event — the Sopot Match Race, which will take place off the city of Sopot on the east coast of Poland in July. 

Executive Director James Pleasance said in a press release: “Now in its 14th year, and third for title sponsor Alpari, the Alpari World Match Racing Tour continues to set the standards in world championship sailing. 

“The new event in Poland is a fantastic addition for 2014 as we continue to grow the World Championship to new markets.”

The overall defending champion is Tyler Canfield, well known to Bermuda Gold Cup fans after his breakthrough win in Hamilton in 2012.

He said: “US One is extremely happy with our 2013 performance as a first-time Alpari Tour card holder. 

“We have a special and talented team, which will remain the same for 2014 as we start the season as current World Champions. However, with new teams and new events, it’s a clean slate and the standards are high. 

“We will be competing with the same enthusiasm and drive to retain our title.”

 Wedgwood dies

Meanwhile, Piers Wedgwood, a British lord and fifth-generation great-grandson of Josiah Wedgwood, creator of the distinctive blue and white pottery that embellishes tea tables and china collections, died on January 29.

Lord Wedgwood donated the Wedgwood Heritage Trophy to the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club in 1990 to be presented first at the 1990 King Edward VII Gold Cup competition to the sailor who best represents the traditional values and history of sailing.

The award, a classic blue and white Wedgwood piece, is on display along with the King Edward VII Gold Cup in the Rotunda of the Yacht Club. 

Lord Wedgwood often came to Bermuda to present the trophy in person and enjoy the racing at the Gold Cup.

Newport Bermuda sponsor

Finally, the Bermuda Race Organizing Committee has named Hinckley Yachts as the Official Sponsor of the Captain’s Meeting before the June 20 start of the Newport Bermuda Race. 

In addition, as it has for the past several races, Hinckley Yachts will provide the on-water check-in boat and two other boats at the starting area for official observers. 

The Captain’s Meeting will take place at the Jane Pickens Theater in Newport on the afternoon of June 19, the day before the race start. The check-in boat will be stationed at the mouth of Newport Harbor.  Each entry in the race is required to pass by the boat and check-in.

The 2014 Newport Bermuda Race will start off Castle Hill, Newport R.I.

For more information about the race, visit www.BermudaRace.com. 

2014 Alpari World Match Racing Tour Calendar

Stage 1: June 5-9 Match Race Germany, Langenargen, Germany

Stage 2: June 30-July 5 Stena Match Cup Sweden, Marstrand, Sweden

Stage 3: July 31-August 3 Sopot Match Race, Sopot, Poland

Stage 4: September 17-21 Chicago Match Cup, Chicago, USA

Stage 5: October 21-26 Argo Group Gold Cup, Hamilton, Bermuda

Stage 6: November 25-29 Monsoon Cup, Malaysia* (to be confirmed)