Great position of the Polish yacht WindWhisper in the Rolex Fastnet Race!

After winning The Ocean Race, WindWhisper is not slowing down. The Polish yacht performed well in the famous Rolex Fastnet Race classic. She took second place in the IRC Super Zero class and was fourth overall in the IRC, in which 364 crews competed.

The WindWhisper Racing Team’s good run continues. A few weeks ago, the crew of the Polish-flagged yacht secured triumph in The Ocean Race. Now, in one of the most famous regattas in the world, the crew led by Spanish skipper Pablo Arrate has once again shown itself to be very good.

The Rolex Fastnet Race is an extremely difficult race held every two years since 1925. This year’s edition was an anniversary – the regatta was held for the fiftieth time. A record number of participants took part – more than 430 yachts. Since 2021, the route of the 690-mile race leads from Cowes to Cherbourg along the southern shores of the UK, through the Celtic Sea, with a turning point – the Fastnet rock and a distinctive lighthouse.

The regatta started on Saturday, July 22. Sailors had to cope with heavy stormy conditions.

On Sunday, the organizers reported that 86 boats withdrew from the race. WindWhisper sailed in the lead from the start, trying to chase the 88-foot American yacht Lucky (ex. Rambler), commanded by Bryon Ehrhart. The red-and-white-flagged yacht stepped into the lead position on Monday, July 25, in the waters of the English Channel.

As it turned out, WindWhisper did not give up the lead again, although it was pressed to the end by Team JAJO, a team well-known from The Ocean Race. It took Pablo Arrate’s crew two days, 8 hours, 12 minutes and 56 seconds to complete the course (4 days, 2 hours, 2 minutes and 16 seconds when corrected). WindWhisper’s red hull crossed the finish line late in the evening of July 24, at exactly 11:57 pm CET.

Even before the race was completed, WindWhisper’s crew reported an error in the calculations determining the yacht’s conversion rate to the race committee. An error, we should add, to their disadvantage.

As the WindWhisper Racing Team, we place fair play and honesty as the overriding value of our sport. During the race progress, we realized we had made a mistake regarding our IRC rating and reported it to the Race Committee. By mutual agreement, we accept a 5 per cent penalty, even if it affects our place on the scoreboard. We always put sportsmanship first,” explained Magda Makowska, CEO of WindWhisper Racing Team.

The penalty did indeed translate into the final result. In the IRC Super Zero class, WindWhisper, instead of first, took second place – behind Team JAJO, while in the overall IRC classification, the Polish yacht moved from second to fourth place. This does not change the fact that the result of the team sailing under the red-and-white flag is unprecedented in the history of Polish sailing.

The WindWhisper Racing Team crew sailed as follows:

1. Pablo Arrarte – skipper
2. Aksel Magdahl – navigator
3. Marcin Sutkowski
4. Paweł Schroeder
5. Filip Wozinski
6. Liz Wardley
7. Kacper Gwóźdź
8. Stanislaw Bajerski
9. Carlos Hernandez
10. Rokas Milevicius
11. Diego Fructuoso Perez
12. Jens Dolmer
13. Jorn Larsen