The Malta Independent on Sunday
Eddie De Villiers and Hi Fidelity crew presented with trophy
Astounding achievement by three Maltese boats
A packed Mediterranean Conference Centre Hall attended yesterday’s Prize-Giving ceremony which brought to an end the 2012 Rolex Middle Sea Race.
Among the distinguished guests who attended the ceremony were Dr M. Demarco, Minister for Tourism, the Environment and Culture, and the Lowell family, the representatives of Rolex in Malta. Rolex have been the main sponsors of this event since 2002.
In a short address before the presentation of the various trophies, Godwin Zammit, the Commodore of the Royal Malta Yacht Club, said the Rolex Middle Sea Race has now become a major attraction in the local sporting calendar.
He added that the 83 participating yachts had provided a spectacle at the start the previous Saturday in Grand Harbour and added that he was sure that the event was bound to continue growing in future.
He also said the success of this year’s event would not have been possible had it not been for the Rolex sponsorship. “We have good sponsors and partners in Rolex. The relationship between them and the Royal Malta Yacht Club has again been strengthened this year. The record number of participants – five more than the previous record of 78 – only strengthens the relationship between the RMYC and Rolex,” he said.
Malcolm Lowell, on behalf of Rolex, also addressed the gathering. Apart from congratulating the winners, he also said that the event had proved to be a great success.
He augured that the relationship with the Royal Malta Yacht Club will continue in future and also hoped that there will even be more participants in future races.
Dr Mario Demarco also congratulated the winners and all the participants for their contribution towards the success of this year’s event.
The Minister described the Rolex Middle Sea Race as the most prestigious international event in Malta.
The packed hall applauded each prizewinner with great enthusiasm, but the biggest applause was obviously reserved for the overall winners, Eddie De Villiers and his South African team on Hi Fidelity. It was a victory at their first time of asking.
On corrected time, they placed first in five days, 18 hours, 38 minutes and 10 seconds.
Second was Speedy (Class 2) from Germany and third Malta’s XP-ACT Banks (Class 3).
Another large round of applause went to Malta’s Artie RTFX who placed fifth overall, but was winner of several other trophies.
Moreover, Lee Satariano and Christian Ripard’s J/122 Artie RTFX were awarded The Transport of Malta prize for the top performing Maltese yacht and the award for the best performance by a three boat international team was awarded to Malta taking into account the performance of Artie RTFX, Comanche Raider II Gasanmamo and XPACT.
This is an astounding achievement considering that 19 countries were represented in the race but only six of the record 83 entries were from Malta.
Sails Racing
There were emotional scenes yesterday morning as Irish sailors Barry Hurley and Andrew Boyle sailed home in their 35FT yacht Dinah to win the double handed class.
They finished just 25 minutes inside the time limit after seven days of tense racing in the Rolex Middle Sea Race.
Hurley has described the race as the 'most intense' race he has ever sailed. The overall achievement has yet to sink in for the Irish pairing but it did not stop early celebrations followed by the Rolex Middle Sea Race Prize Giving at the Mediterranean Conference Centre early in the afternoon.