If there is no doubt about something, it is that the Copa del Rey Mapfre is the summer regatta in the Mediterranean. Everyone wants to participate and everyone dreams of winning it sometime.
But this year, even if it is not said out loud, there is an added demand in the atmosphere to make clear the role of the Real Club Náutico de Palma (RCNP) in the world of sport. Currently, the Palma club is going through a difficult time after the concession expired and an extension was not accepted, so that right now it is in limbo and with an uncertain future.
At the yacht club they continue with their activity, both sporting and social, and the organization of events such as the Copa del Rey demonstrates the fundamental role of an entity that could suffer if things do not change in the coming months. The steps to follow are currently unknown.
The manager of the RCNP and director of the 41st Copa del Rey Mapfre, Manu Fraga, tells La Vanguardia that "the ball is currently in the court of the administrations, which must make it very clear if they really want to support the continuity of an entity with 75 years of history”.
Meanwhile, the Copa del Rey Mapfre continues to be its great showcase on a national and international scale. This year he turns 41 with a very high competitive level. There are the best of the Spanish fleet, accompanied by some foreign boats that only compete in Spain if it is in the Copa del Rey, and the exclusive ClubSwan one-designs are still alive, with two classes of their own.
The Majorica ORC class is the predominant one in terms of participants. Real-time navigation is what has marked the future of the regatta, from the different measurement and competition systems (IOR, IRC, IMS, RI), in recent years the ORC –the most used in Europe– has prevailed in the regattas in Spain.
The ORC 1 is considered the queen class, there are the most powerful. The TP52 Aifos and Blue Carbon. Precisely at Aifos, work has been done this winter to optimize the boat and try to be as competitive as the DK46, in the case of HM Hospitales Hydra –winner of Godó and TabarcaVela– and Estrella Damm Sailing Team, while one step below is the Urbania or the Argentinian Farr45 From Now One, which has proven to be a most regular boat. Not forgetting Palibex Elena Nova, a Swan42 who will seek her fortune in the Copa del Rey after winning the Queen of Valencia Trophy.
In ORC 2, the Swan42 Teatro Soho Caixabank starts as a favourite, given what has been seen in recent years, but in this edition it will have to count on a sister ship like the Seabery Dralion and the incombustible Maverta. In ORC 3, L'Immens Laplaza Assessor should always be taken into account, just like the Tanit IV Medilevel. In ORC 4, the Ybarra Befesa will premiere, and attention to Asterix, winner this year of the Godó.
Among the Spaniards in the exclusive ClubSwan, we find the Tenaz at 50 and the Nadir, Pez de Abril and Porrón X at 42.
