Press releases
Zoom on Léo Jordil and Arnaud Camoin
Among the 102 sailors taking part in the 11th edition of the St.Barth Cata Cup, which set sail on Thursday November 15, there are both professionals and amateurs, athletes from the four corners of the globe. Among the amateurs is Léo Jordil, whose father Vincent is one of the original organizers of the regatta. This year is the first time that Léo’s busy schedule has allowed him to participate in this event, and for his baptism by fire, the Saint Barth native chose Arnaud Camoin as his partner, although they usually sail together on a very different kind of boat, the 15 M JI Tuiga, flagship of the Yacht Club de Monaco.
It has been over 10 years since Jeff Ledée, Thierry Lhinares and Vincent Jordil, Léo’s dad, created the St.Barth Cata Cup. And yet this is the first time that Léo will participate in the competition. “I left the island at 14 to go to school. I had to finish my studies first; then find time in my professional schedule, which was never the case before this year, usually because of the boat show in Fort Lauderdale. This time, I am here, and I would like to say it’s about time,” jokes the young man. And for his first Cata Cup appearance, he will be racing with his friend, Arnaud Camoin, harbormaster at the Yacht Club de Monaco. They usually sail together on the classic circuit in the Mediterranean aboard Tuiga, a 15 M JI built in 1909. The boat was purchased and entirely restored by Prince Albert of Monaco in the 1990s. “We have raced together on this boat for the past three seasons, with several good results to our credit, as we won the 15 M JI championship in 2015,” notes Arnaud, who will be sailing for the first time this week with his acolyte in Formula 18. “For me, it’s even the first time I have stepped foot on this kind of boat,” adds the sailor from Monaco, who last sailed on a small sport multi-hull (Hobie Cat 16) over 20 years ago. It’s just the opposite for Léo, who regularly sailed on a Prindle 19 then F18 with his father. “The idea for us during this St. Barth Cata Cup, is to sail properly and avoid making mistakes. We know that the conditions will be rough this week and if we manage to finish, we will already be happy. Tuesday, during our training day, we laughed a lot. Our goal is really to have fun, and if it goes well, we are already thinking of coming back next year and doing more races,” concludes Léo Jordil.
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24/11/2024
After literally crushing the competition at the F18 World Championships on the Costa Brava last summer, Pablo Volkër & Federico Polimeni (Saint-Barth Assurances) were naturally among the top contenders at 16th édition of the St.Barth Cata Cup. While they lived up to their reputation by winning the first race of this regatta, they met with some stiff competition from their adversaries, in particular Patrick Demesmaeker & Olivier Gagliani (Les Perles de St Barth – Bativrd). Behind the Belgians by three slim points at the dawn of the day of the final race, the Spaniards prevailed and sailed to victory, succeeding Ravi Parent & Nicolas Lovisa as winners of this regatta!
23/11/2024
This week, it has been impossible to predict what might happen in terms of the weather conditions in Saint Barthélemy. Actually, there was more wind than predicted on Thursday and Friday, which allowed the race committee for the St.Barth Cata Cup to validate four races, against all odds, but the reverse played out on Saturday. Even if the wind was less constant than expected, it was possible for the 53 duos in competition to sail one good race between the Bay of Saint Jean and the small islands of Pelé and Le Boulanger. A race whose results tightened the difference between the leaders in the overall standings. Case in point, in the lead, Patrick Demesmaeker and Olivier Gagliani (Les Perles de St. Barth – Bativrd) are now only three small points in advance of Pablo Volkër and Federico Polimeni (Saint-Barth Assurances), winners of the “ St Barth Assurances Allianz” Prize. To win their bet of being the first team to add their names to the winners list of the regatta for the third time, the Belgians do not have the slightest room for error on Sunday!
22/11/2024
“If you listen to the weather forecast, you’ll spend your life in the bistro,” as the famous French saying goes. The organizers of the St.Barth Cata Cup once again proved that one shouldn’t depend the previsions. Cautious this morning, they sent out the first race, followed by a second identical one, and finally a third, longer course, in the afternoon, taking the best advantage of every light wind available. Like yesterday, the conditions forced the sailors to display a great deal of concentration and finesse. A little consistency as well, as the rather unstable wind dealt some interesting hands. In this context, Australians Ruben Booth and Joan Costa (Kiton) proved the most constant, taking home “EDEN ROCK VILLA RENTAL” Prize, but in the previsionary standings, Belgians Patrick Demesmaeker and Olivier Gagliani (Les Perles de St-Barth) have the advantage, having sailing to victory in two of the three races.
21/11/2024
In spite of rather pessimistic weather predictions for Thursday, November 21, the organizers of the 16th edition of the St.Barth Cata Cup did everything possible to make the best of light wind. As a result, they didn't miss the only small window of opportunity of the day, enabling the 53 crews in the competition to complete their first race between Saint Jean Bay and Roche Le Boeuf. It was a particularly tactical leg, which did not rattle the favorites. As proof, Spaniards Pablo Völker and Federico Polimeni (Saint-Barth Assurances) sailed to victory. However, these reigning Formula 18 world champions had their work cut out for them. Under pressure in the final lengths by Belgians Patrick Demesmaeker and Olivier Gagliani (Les Perles de St-Barth), they won by a nose!
20/11/2024
After the final day of training on Wednesday, the 54 duos registered for the 16th edition of the St.Barth Cata Cup are anxious to enter into the action, yet it seems as if the first races could be extremely tactical. If we are to believe the weather forecast, it is probable that the first confrontations will take place with very light wind, requiring a great deal of finesse on the part of the sailors. One hopes this does not mean that the first races must be postponed due to an insufficient amount of wind to ensure good racing conditions. It that scenario were to play out, it was be a first since the debut of the regatta in 2008. At the moment, the competitors are not too worried and are hoping for a pleasant surprise as the weather forecast has been far from reality most of the past week!
15/11/2024
In just one week, the starting signal for the 16th edition of the St. Barth Cata Cup will be given. As of now, no fewer than 54 teams are registered for the competition, including Pablo Völker and Federico Polimeni, the Spanish sailors who won gold at the Formula 18 World Championships last July. Participating together in the event for the very first time, they will face the top specialists of the class, most of whom are seasoned veterans of the event. In this context, will they manage to display the same dominance on the Caribbean waters from November 21 to 24 as they did on the Costa Brava last summer? That remains to be seen. Firstly, because the race format—characterized by long-distance courses—is quite unique; secondly, because the sailing area around Saint-Barthélemy is extremely technical and full of pitfalls; and finally, because there are many competitors aiming to succeed the Americans Ravi Parent and Nicholas Lovisa, starting with Parent and Lovisa themselves!
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