Swan One Design Worlds At The Yacht Club Costa Smeralda Sets High Standards For Serious And Sophisticated Sailing Competition
Full disclosure. Nautor Swan yachts have had a special place in my heart since 1993. Back then, I was 20-year-old dreamer who set off from Newport, Rhode Island to see the world aboard a Swan 651. And being a deckhand on a 65-foot-long Swan that already had a legendary reputation for quality, performance, safety, and a distinctively elegant style was in fact a dream come true.
But that was a few years before Leonardo Ferragamo bought the well-respected Nautor Swan shipyard based in Finland. Yes, that Leonardo Ferragamo (who started in his family's Florence-based Ferragamo fashion brand when he was 20-years-old and went on to become the Chairman of the company) is also a passionate sailor.
The Swan One Design Worlds at the YCCS in Porto Cervo features spectacular racing in a spectacular ... More setting
And as I found out during the Swan One Design World Championships at the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda in Porto Cervo this weekend (he competes in the ClubSwan 50 class), he's as passionate about sailing now as he was then.
'I was in love with Swan for ten years before I bought the company,' he said before the final day of racing. 'In addition to the sheer joy of sailing and racing, one of the things that made me so passionate about Swan was the similarities I saw with my company. And though the businesses are different, I love how each must have a similar approach to make sure that everything is credible, reliable, and always the best that money can buy.
Nautor Swan President Leonardo Ferragamo (at the wheel) competes in the ClubSwan 50 World ... More Championship at the YCCS in Porto Cervo
'When I took the company over the Swan Cup was already well established. But I wanted to bring Swan racing to a whole other level.'
And to do that, Nautor Swan had to do more than just build sexy new high-performance raceboats and provide state-of-the-art service. To really provide the best experience for Swan owners like himself, Ferragamo believed the company had to organize world-class racing and events all over the world for Swan owners to enjoy as well.
'Our goal is not only to push the boundaries of performance but also to cultivate a community where the spirit of competition is balanced with friendship and mutual respect," says Giovanni Pomati CEO of Nautor Swan. "The 2025 racing calendar is a celebration of the unity that sailing brings, and we eagerly look forward to seeing these values shine through in every race.'
And anyone who participated in the recent Nations League Swan One Design World Championships at the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda in Porto Cervo will attest, they have. In fact, not only were all of the 35 boats that raced four classes (12 ClubSwan 50s, 7 ClubSwan 42s, 9 ClubSwan 36s and 7 in the new ClubSwan 28), treated to world class racing in one of the most desirable venues in the Mediterranean. Crews and families enjoyed welcome cocktails in the YCCS's cocktail bar on the first night of the event, and the Swan One Design World's Owners Dinner on the YCCS's pool terrace before the final day of racing.
The Yacht Club Costa Smeralda in Porto Cervo is where the Swan One Design Worlds 2025 took place
'The relationship between Nautor Swan and the YCCS is a special one,' said YCCS Commodore Andrea Recordati. 'We celebrated 40 years of mutual and fruitful cooperation at last year's Rolex Swan Cup. Our race course once again offered varied conditions on each of the four days, from light breeze to Mistral wind, making for a well-balanced and engaging event.'
Hendrik Brandis and his crew celebrate winning the 2025 ClubSwan 50 World Championship at the YCCS ... More in Porto Cervo
Meanwhile, out on the race course, Earlybird from Germany clinched the title of ClubSwan 50 World Champion with one race to spare. A beaming owner Hendrik Brandis, back on the dock and surrounded by his team, declared: 'We are unbelievably happy that we've finally become the world champions of the ClubSwan 50. We have been trying to achieve this for many years, since the inception of the class. I think we came in three times as vice champions, but we never made it. And this year everything worked well together, a fantastic team, perfect conditions, and we made it – we're very very happy and ready to celebrate!'
Brazilian Hakon Lorentzen's Mamao took home the title of ClubSwan 36 class champion for the third time. 'I can't believe that we have managed to win the ClubSwan 36 title three times,' he said. 'I started sailing on an Optimist at 10 years old and I would never have believed we would have come this far. Winning anywhere is great. But winning in Porto Cervo it's even more great.'
Mamao wins the ClubSwan 36 class at the 2025 Swan One Design Worlds
The ClubSwan 42 class was won by the Spanish boat Pez de Abril, owned by class veteran José Maria Meseguer. 'I've been in Porto Cervo so many times and not had great luck,' he said. 'This time we won the Cup so we're very happy with that. Racing in a one design class is fantastic, with all the boats being the same, being so competitive, being so tight in windward and downwind racing, it's a magnificent experience. I wouldn't change that for anything else in the world.'
ClubSwan 28 Swing owned by Japan's Keisuke Suzuki won the ClubSwan 28 class
The brand new ClubSwan 28 Swing owned by Japan's Keisuke Suzuki aided by the tactical skills of multiple world champion and Olympic 470 gold medalist Will Ryan will be the first name engraved on the Gold Cup for this class.
The cool thing is this was only one of several stops on ClubSwan racing calendar that culminates in St. Tropez at The Nations League 2025 regatta in October where all ClubSwan one design and rating classes will compete for the Nations Cup.
Tight racing and beautiful surroundings at the Swan One Design Worlds at the YCCS in Porto Cervo
As you might have guessed that special place I have in my heart for Nautor Swan has grown. A lot. And I'm going to come right out and say it. Lenardo Ferragamo's vison to propel Nautor Swan to the next level with The ClubSwan racing program (in addition to consistently launching innovative new designs, a comprehensive support network, and even charter and brokerage divisions) sets an impressively high bar for anyone who is passionate about sailing.
And now that Nautor Swan has recently merged with San Lorenzo Yachts I'm pretty sure the bar is going to be raised even higher.
The Swan 128 undersail.
Oh, by the way, the Swan One Design World Championships at the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda in Porto Cervo wasn't the only newsworthy Nautor Swan event taking place this month. The Sparkman & Stephens Swan Rendezvous took place the same weekend on the island of Elba. And the newest Swan superyacht—the Swan 128—is being introduced to the press at the shipyard in Finland as we speak.
Watch this space.
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