Photos: ACI Sail / Studio Borlenghi

With the Rovinj premiere of the ClubSwan 36 ACI Cup, ACI returned to the world of racing in great style

Over three decades, ACI and Rovinj have played a key role in the development of Croatia as a prestigious racing destination, and the combination of Mediterranean charm, nautical excellence and perfect conditions in the heart of historic Rovinj served as the ideal backdrop for the premiere of the ClubSwan 36 ACI Cup, a regatta with which ACI returned to the world of racing in great style.
The first regatta of the ClubSwan brand at the ACI Marina Rovinj, where crews from all over Europe participated, was organised by ACI and ACI Sail with the support of Nautor’s Swan, a renowned sailing boat manufacturer and the founder of the ClubSwan Sailing League. Races such as the Nations Trophy, Rolex Swan Cup or Swan One Design Worlds are held in well-known places in the Mediterranean, such as Porto Cervo, St Tropez and Palma de Mallorca, and first such regatta in Croatia was, at the same time, an announcement of the ClubSwan 36 European Championship, which Rovinj will host in October 2022.

– Nautical tourism in Croatia has become one of the main generators of a successful tourist season. Therefore, this race should be seen as the perfect tool that allows us to start the season much earlier and finish it much later. The goal of the partnership with Nautor’s Swan is to bring such clients and races to Croatia with the aim of developing a completely new generation of nautical tourism. The ClubSwan 36 ACI Cup has showed that Rovinj and the entire Croatian coast have enormous potential and expertise necessary for organising world-famous regattas. ACI definitely has sailing in its DNA. Not only as a sport, but also as an activity that significantly contributes to making tourism in Croatia more varied and promotes our sea in the best possible way, Kristijan Pavić, President of the Management Board of ACI, pointed out.
After three days spent racing in the ClubSwan 36 speedboats, which had been designed by Juan Kouyoumdjian, one of the world’s most successful naval architects, the crew of the sailing boat Tracing Perfection and its skipper Daniel Kipp from Germany celebrated their victory, ahead of the crews of the Bracing Breeze and its skipper Lukasz Podniesinski from Poland, and the Facing Future with its skipper Nevra Eker from Turkey.
– We launched the ACI Sail project three years ago and this regatta is a big milestone for us. I would call these three wonderful days in Rovinj ‘the next generation of sailing’ because of all the events that accompanied the ClubSwan 36 ACI Cup. Equally enthusiastic are the clients of ACI Sail, who will be happy to tell their business partners and friends about the great conditions they had in Rovinj, about the ACI marina and the wonderful experience they have gained here, said Ivan Kljaković Gašpić, ACI Sail project manager.