Le ultime, importanti novità dalla 151 Miglia-Trofeo Cetilar

The 151 Miglia – Trofeo Cetilar 2020 has also been forced to give in and postpone this meeting, originally scheduled for the end of May, to next year. The open water regatta organised by a Committee formed of the Yacht Club Repubblica Marinara of Pisa, the Yacht Club Punta Ala and the Yacht Club Livorno, in collaboration with the Port of Pisa and the Marina of Punta Ala, with partner PharmaNutra S.p.A. and its brand Cetilar®, has been cancelled because of the COVID-19 emergency and will now take place on Sunday 30 May, 2021, over the traditional route Livorno / Marina di Pisa – Giraglia – Isola d’Elba – Formiche di Grosseto – Punta Ala.

The difficult decision was taken yesterday afternoon, following consultations, in which the President of The Italian Sailing Federation, Francesco Ettorre also participated, and, naturally, on the basis of the most recent government guidelines, which highlight fears that the current restrictive measures will continue until the beginning of May or even longer.

‘It is a painful decision, which offers no alternatives; a return to normality will be slow and gradual, and the end of May is just around the corner, so the decision to suspend the 151 Miglia was practically a foregone one. We will see each other directly on May 30, 2021, for the twelfth edition: it will be the best ever, we are in no doubt about that’, explained Roberto Lacorte, President of the Yacht Club Repubblica Marinara di Pisa.

‘We could have decided to postpone it to September, instead of cancelling it completely, but that is what everyone is doing, the end result of which will be an over-crowded diary. Apart from this, there are no certainties concerning what will happen over the next few months, so the most realistic course of action is to take definitive action. In conclusion, we felt that, at a time of economic difficulty, holding an event that as well as being sporting should also be full or joy and fun’, added Alessandro Masini, President of the Yacht Club Punta Ala.

‘Moving the 151 Miglia to September would mean changing the spirit of the challenge, which is that of the summer solstice, not the equinox at the start of autumn: a spirit that no one is prepared at all to give up. Each regatta has its own identity and this identity is also linked to the calendar’, concluded the President of the Yacht Club Livorno, Gian Luca Conti.

More than 250 yachtsmen and women of the boats that have already been enrolled in the 151 Miglia – Trofeo Cetilar 2020, an absolute record, will all now be able to choose whether to ask for a full refund of the sum paid, or whether to shift their enrolment automatically to next year’s edition. Their faith in the 151 Miglia organisation, demonstrated by the rush to enrol months in advance, will not be in vain: the organising committee has decided to take concrete action and help the doctors, nurses, technicians, health workers and volunteers, who are fighting on the front line with passion, strength, self-sacrifice and complete commitment. A donation will be made equal to 50% of the enrolments already paid (and those still to be paid) to the Civil Defence for their efforts in fighting COVID-19, covered entirely by sponsor PharmaNutra S.p.A.

The best way to give life to the eleventh 151 Miglia – Trofeo Cetilar, which will not be fought on the water, is to transform it, thanks to the over 250 yachtsmen who have already enrolled, into a virtual regatta, to give help to those who, at this time, really need it. A 151 that will take place in an ocean of solidarity, starting from 4pm on May 30, 2020, in a form that will soon be unveiled to the wider public and transmitted across the regatta’s official channels by way of the traditional video marking the conclusion of the event.

To see the majestic fleet of the 151 Miglia on the sea, however, we shall have to await the afternoon of May 30, 2021: the departure will be preceded by the Crew Party of Saturday 29 May and followed on Tuesday 1 June by the ineluctable and legendary Dinner Party on the beach at Punta Ala.