Cover From left to right: Classic vintage yachts, Mariquita, Moonbeam IV, and Viveka at the Richard Mille Cup 2024 (Photo: Harry Kenney-Herbert / Richard Mille)
From left to right: Classic vintage yachts, Mariquita, Moonbeam IV, and Viveka at the Richard Mille Cup 2024 (Photo: Harry Kenney-Herbert / Richard Mille)
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The second edition of this prestigious cup once again celebrates the glory of yachting
The Richard Mille Cup set sail this year from June 2 to 15 along the English Channel with a fleet of around 12 historic yachts. Inaugurated in 2023, the young regatta has become synonymous with Swiss luxury watch brand Richard Mille, first conceived as an event that celebrated classic pre-war sailing yachts by racing them, as befitting of their purpose.
This year’s edition of the summer sailing event marks the second voyage, offering two weeks of intense competition, with inshore races staged at four host ports: Falmouth, Dartmouth, Cowes, and Le Havre, along with testing passage races undertaken by vintage sailing yachts across the same four ports.
This year also saw the addition of two overnight races from Dartmouth to Cowes and Cowes to Le Havre. “The Richard Mille Cup 2024 celebrates the best of maritime heritage,” William Collier, organiser and classic yacht expert explains.
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Above Sailor in action on board Moonbeam (Photo: Richard Mille)
Above Sailors in action on board Mariquita (Photo: Yann Riou / Richard Mille)
Sailor in action on board Moonbeam (Photo: Richard Mille)
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There is a strict criteria for the selection of participating yachts, which are often the cream of the crop amongst vintage yachts. “This is the ideal environment to admire the magnificence and beauty of these classic yachts from the pre-war era and the involvement of the Yacht Clubs allows owners and admirers alike to come together in the true spirit of the event,” Richard Mille explains. With such exclusive requirements, boat aficionados and maritime enthusiasts hail the cup as the birthplace of modern vintage yacht racing.
In just two short years, the Richard Mille Cup has become practically a mecca for vintage yacht racing devotees. This year saw a fleet of ten stunningly painted yachts in an authentic classic style, among them were three designed by legendary Scottish yacht designer William Fife III: Mariquita (1911), Moonbeam III (1903), and Moonbeam IV (1920), and the oldest participating yacht, Thalia, who saw her maiden voyage back in 1889.
Mariquita, the last survivor of the 19-Metre Class built by William Fife & Son in 1911, claimed victory this year (Photo: Richard Mille)
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The competition saw the yachts visiting four historic yacht clubs in England in France: the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club in Falmouth, the Royal Dart Yacht Club in Dartmouth, the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes, and the Société des Régates du Havre in Le Havre, France. Throughout the fortnight, the yachts were brought back to their glory years sailing across the waters, with Mariquita emerging as the winner in the class for bigger yachts, after an exhilarating battle with her counterparts. In the class for smaller yachts, the win went to Patna, an original Charles E. Nicolson (British yacht designer) design built in 1920.
Marquita’s owner Benoît Couturier and skipper Jacques Caraes were presented with the winner’s trophy for their class, a 1-metre sterling silver cup created for the event by British royal jeweller, Garrard.
Reflecting on the event, Collier said: “It’s been an incredible two weeks. The Richard Mille Cup was conceived, most of all, as an event that celebrated classic yachts by racing them as they were intended to race. We believe that the quality of the restorations and the skills of the sailors shines through, creating great racing and worthy winners.”
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