VOR update 19

 

2 December 2010 – Polish yacht Copernicus, the smallest yacht to complete the very first Whitbread Round the World Race (the forerunner of the Volvo Ocean Race) in 1973-74 will join Great Britain II/Whitbread Heritage on the start line of the Volvo Ocean Race Legends, the first official reunion and regatta to be held in Alicante next year and celebrating the first 10 races held over 37 years.

The 45’ Copernicus was built especially for the first Whitbread by the Gdanska Stocznia Jachtowa ‘Stogi’  boatyard  in Poland, with a lot of help from the members of the Yacht Klub Stal Gdynia on the Baltic Sea coast, who have owned her ever since.   She is their pride and joy and the club keeps her in good condition and tries not to interfere with the history of her construction or to alter her lines.  The participation of Copernicus in the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta will bring the club back to the world of ocean racing.

“We have to be there,” says Marek ‘Goly’ Galkiewicz, the project manager for the yacht club.  “We are cultivating a tradition and thinking of the future,” he says, while confirming that Delphia Yachts, the biggest Polish producer of sailing yachts and powerboats, supports Yacht Klub Stal Gdynia and Copernicus in their participation in Legends Regatta.

Copernicus raced the whole way around the world without drama or incident, except perhaps on the final leg.  Nothing had been heard of the yacht since the start in Rio de Janeiro some weeks earlier and the Race Committee, who suspected her radio was out of action, put out a request to all shipping to report any sighting.  One month after the start from Rio, the little yacht and her crew were reported to be in excellent condition and still racing.  Fourteen boats completed the course and Copernicus finished the grueling 27,000 nautical miles in 11th place.  Her skipper was Olympic yachtsman, Zygfryd ‘Zyga’ Perlicki.

She is constructed on an oak frame with mahogany planking with a plywood deck covered with teak and was the smallest boat to complete the race.  Concorde, a French Contessa 32, although smaller, only sailed in leg two. 

‘Stal’ – means steel and, in the pioneering early days, people really had to be made of steel to organise a campaign like this:  to take part and then to finish the round the world race. The Polish were people with dreams which came true although they lived in a country behind the Iron Curtain, with modest maritime traditions.

After finishing the race in 1974, Copernicus was used for training, cruising and expeditions and still regularly sails across the Baltic and North Sea. In 2006 she was awarded The Cruise of the Year trophy in Poland for a circumnavigation of Iceland.  Lots of people who had worked on her over the years were able to sail her and feel that their hard work was worthwhile.

Times have changed since Copernicus raced around the world, and the people of Poland have changed too, but, even though there are now proper budgets, space-age materials, lots of electronics and mass global media coverage, the Volvo Ocean Race still remains the most difficult and toughest fully-crewed race around the world there is today.

About the Volvo Legends Regatta and Reunion

• The first ever official reunion of all who have sailed in the world’s premier ocean race since the inaugural race in 1973-74• To be held in Alicante, Spain from 1-5 November 2011, week between Alicante in-port race and the start of leg one of the Volvo Ocean Race

• A full racing schedule over two days

• Will conclude with a departure ceremony and parade of sail to escort the Volvo Ocean Race fleet to the start line for Leg One

• A rich shoreside programme includes a regatta prizegiving, a gala dinner and a host of other social events

• Chat shows and forums after racing

•  Legends entries open for public viewing

About the Volvo Ocean Race

• 148 boats have crossed the start line in the 37-year history of The Whitbread/Volvo Ocean Race

• 1974 crew competed in the first 10 events

• The first 31,250 nautical-mile race first took place 37 years ago (as the Whitbread Round the World Race 1973-74), testing the crews against some of the most ferocious elements that man can encounter

• The Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12  will be the 11th edition of the event

About Copernicus

She was built especially for the inaugural Whitbread Round the World Race in 1973-74 by the Gdanska Stocznia Jachtowa ‘Stogi’  boatyard  in Poland

• She is 45’ length overall

• She has always been owned by the Yacht Klub ‘Stal’ Gdynia on the Baltic Sea coast, whose members helped to build her

• She is the smallest yacht ever to complete The Whitbread

• She raced with a crew of five

• Her skipper was Olympian Zygfryd Perlicki