ChampionS !

3 December, 2018

It's not just one, but three wins for Alinghi in Los Cabos.
Amid shifty and light wind conditions, Alinghi won the last Act of the 2018 Extreme Sailing Series and in doing so secured first place in the Championship, the team's fourth such win (2008, 2014, 2016 and 2018).

In parallel and at the end of this season's seventh regatta, David Niklès and João Cabeçadas were named the Championship's best shore crew of the year, their meticulous work having given Alinghi's sailors a truly competitive boat for every single race.

Over 141 races, 53 of which were won, sailed over 28 days of competition this year, Ernesto Bertarelli, Arnaud Psarofaghis, Nicolas Charbonnier, Nils Frei, Bryan Mettraux, Timothé Lapauw, Yves Detrey, Arthur Cevey and Pierre-Yves Jorand demonstrated mastery and calm to overcome the defending champions, SAP, as well as Oman Air, Red Bull, Ineos Team UK and all the others whose high quality performances have pushed Alinghi all the way.

Ernesto Bertarelli, helmsman and skipper:
"With this win in Los Cabos, the 2018 season ends on a high point, with this fourth title coming only a few weeks after our win in the D35 Trophy. Given these two victories, our great team, and having achieved all our goals for the season, I'm thrilled."

Arnaud Psarofaghis, helmsman and co-skipper:
"It was a complicated Act in Los Cabos, with not many races sailed and a very shifty wind. The team did a great job of staying calm and treating each run as if it was the last. Winning the Act in addition to winning the Championship really is the icing on the cake.
"The team is the best I've ever sailed with and a big thank you to all of them for giving us the victories this year. I also thank Ernesto Bertarelli especially for having made all this possible, as well as the team's partners who have been with us throughout the year."

Yves Detrey, bowman:
"I am really happy with our season and the way we've sailed. For sure, we had a bit of a hard time with this event. The conditions were really difficult, with the wind going in all directions, meaning anything could happen. But we remained solid until the end and we showed that we can cope with anything.
"For decades now, the strength of the Alinghi team has been based upon passion, experience and, above all, knowing how to put the right people in the right place."

Pierre-Yves Jorand, team director:
"Both on sea and on shore, the team has been fantastic all year long. In their own way and in their own field of expertise, every single person has contributed to this success, including, and as an example, the unwavering support provided by Ernesto and Nils from Switzerland."

After a seventh victory in the D35 Trophy and with this win aboard the GC32, the team has met its sporting goals for 2018 and is already looking forward to next year challenges in Switzerland and beyond.

Click here for the full results of the last Act after its 12 races.
Click here for the general ranking of the 2018 championship.

Hashtags for the event
#GoAlinghiGo  //  #Extremesailing
 
To find out more
extremesailingseries.com

If you want to know more about the race tracking system, the team and the racing in general, you can find a recap here.

Credit for photos: Lloyd Images