The Dragon’s Passage to Loro Piana Giraglia Glory
The 73rd Loro Piana Giraglia closed in Genoa with a story worthy of one of the Mediterranean’s great classic races. From the elegance of Saint-Tropez to the warm welcome of Yacht Club Italiano, by way of the legendary Giraglia Rock, the 2026 edition delivered everything that gives this event its enduring place in offshore racing: heritage, style, close competition, seamanship and an unmistakably international spirit.
First held in 1953, the Loro Piana Giraglia has always been more than a race. It is a sporting bridge between France and Italy, between Saint-Tropez and Genoa, and between generations of sailors drawn to one of offshore racing’s most evocative courses.
Organised by Yacht Club Italiano in collaboration with Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez, under the guidance of the Federazione Italiana Vela and the Fédération Française de Voile, the 2026 edition brought together a fleet that reflected the true breadth of modern yacht racing, from powerful Maxis and high performance racers to timeless classics and determined smaller teams.
Yacht Club Italiano President Carlo Cameli spoke with emotion at the final prize giving in Genoa, reflecting on the heritage of the Loro Piana Giraglia and the shared values behind the event.
“Every year, when we arrive at this moment, we celebrate much more than the winners of a regatta. We celebrate a tradition that has united sailors, clubs and nations for more than seven decades, while continuing to inspire new generations of competitors. What makes the Loro Piana Giraglia unique is not only the competition itself. It is the extraordinary mix of history, friendship, sportsmanship and passion for the sea. Year after year, professional crews, amateurs, owners, tacticians and young talents come together and become part of the same story, a story that started more than 70 years ago and continues to evolve without ever losing its soul. Loro Piana has become much more than a partner of this event. It has become an integral part of the identity of the Giraglia itself. Through its commitment, vision and passion for the sea, Loro Piana has helped us elevate this regatta to new levels of excellence, while remaining faithful to the values and traditions that have defined it for more than 70 years."
“The Giraglia is not only about reaching a finish line. It is about the spirit that remains with us long after the race is over, the friendships renewed, the challenges overcome and the memories created at sea.”
The Loro Piana Giraglia regatta opened in Saint-Tropez with four days of inshore racing, where the Gulf of Saint-Tropez and the Bay of Pampelonne provided a spectacular natural arena. Ashore, the Race Village, daily prize givings and the Loro Piana atmosphere gave the event its distinctive blend of glamour and camaraderie. On the water, the racing was serious from the first start. Light and shifting winds placed a premium on clean starts, accurate manoeuvres and patience. By the final day, with the full 145 boat fleet finishing in front of the Loro Piana Lounge in the Port of Saint-Tropez, the regatta had created the perfect launch pad for the offshore race to Genoa.
Among the Maxis, Karel Komarek’s Wallycento V emerged as the winner of IRC 0 Maxi A in the inshore series in a class of remarkable depth. In IRC 0 Maxi B, Carlo Puri Negri’s Farr/Felci 70 Atalanta II produced one of the most dominant performances of the week, winning all five races to finish with a perfect score.
Across Groups 1 and 2, the inshore series carried its own drama. Giovanni Lombardi Stronati’s Wallyrocket 51 Django WR won IRC 1 after a superb contest with Jean Pierre Barjon’s TP52 Spirit of Lorina, a duel that gave the Saint-Tropez week one of its clearest sporting narratives. Luca Locatelli’s Swan 45 Thetis won ORC 1, Willem Ellemeet’s Dutch Dufour 40 Flying Dolphin won IRC 2, and Marcello De Gaspari’s J/109 Fremito D’Arja claimed ORC 2 on countback after a series-long battle with Leonardo Petti and Giorgio Anserini’s J/109 Chestress.
The inshore series also highlighted one of Yacht Club Italiano’s most important themes: passing experience to the next generation. The club’s youth team on ELO II, guided by Tommaso Chieffi, finished an impressive fourth overall in ORC 1. The project was a reminder that the Loro Piana Giraglia is not only about trophies and famous boats. It is also about learning, teamwork and the transfer of knowledge from experienced sailors to the next generation.
On Wednesday 17 June, the focus turned offshore. The start in the Gulf of Saint-Tropez was light and elegant, with a gentle easterly breeze sending the fleet to the Giraglia Rock. The forecast suggested a slow and difficult race, but the leading boats kept moving better than expected. The 241 nautical mile course still demanded judgement and tactical precision.
At the front of the fleet, line honours became a magnificent duel between Furio Benussi’s ARCA SGR and Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones’ Magic Carpet E. ARCA SGR, from Trieste, Italy, crossed the finish line in Genoa with an elapsed time of 1 day, 1 hour, 5 minutes and 56 seconds. Magic Carpet E finished just 5 minutes and 11 seconds behind. The battle carried real history. ARCA SGR was line honours winner in 2021, while the Magic Carpet name is woven deep into the modern story of the Giraglia, with previous line honours victories and many hard fought campaigns.
For Benussi, the victory was both sporting and emotional. ARCA SGR carried young sailors from the team’s youth project, making the win not only a result for a 100 footer, but a memory to be carried forward by the next generation. For Magic Carpet E, the narrow defeat added another chapter to a long and passionate relationship with the race. Ian Walker, racing in the afterguard, described a contest in which the boats were almost side by side for much of the course, with Magic Carpet E at one stage nearly four miles ahead before losing the advantage in a shutdown.
Third to finish was Pier Luigi Loro Piana’s ClubSwan 80 My Song, with George Sakellaris’ JV72 Proteus fourth on the water and Alessandro Del Bono’s JV80 Capricorno fifth. For the Maxis, the offshore race delivered both speed and tension, turning what had been expected to be a drifting contest into a fast, tactical and memorable passage to Genoa.
The defining result of the 2026 Loro Piana Giraglia came on corrected time. Bernard Arkas’ Turkish TP52 Arkas Blue Moon won the Loro Piana Giraglia overall under IRC, lifting the Loro Piana Challenge Trophy,giving the event one of its most striking and international stories. The victory placed the team among the most successful Turkish offshore campaigns in the history of the sport, and gave the race an unforgettable image: Arkas Blue Moon, with its dramatic dragon artwork across hull and sails, arriving in Genoa as the overall winner.
The dragon design reflects owner Bernard Arkas’ passion for art and draws on Turkish mythology. In a regatta where style and substance are never far apart, it gave the winning boat a powerful visual identity as well as a historic result. Arkas Blue Moon first had to win IRC 1, one of the strongest classes in the race, beating a fleet that included top Wallyrocket 51s and TP52s. Roberto Lacorte’s RocketNikka was second, only 57 seconds ahead of Giovanni Lombardi Stronati’s Django WR after IRC time correction.
For Fikret Oral, trimmer on Arkas Blue Moon and part of the team for more than ten years, the result was “a dream come true”. The team had been building its performance step by step. In 2025, Arkas Blue Moon had led overall at the Giraglia Rock before the race slipped away. In 2026, the story was reversed. The team rounded the rock further back, then sailed better and better, trusted its plan and found the decisive performance in the final stages.
British sailor Martin Watts, the team’s coach and crew boss, described the victory as the result of precision and learning. In light airs, every tenth of a knot mattered. Crew weight, sail trim and concentration were critical. Watts has worked with the team for ten years, honing the Turkish crew into a unit capable of getting to the front of an international fleet.
Other offshore class stories added depth to the overall picture. Guido Paolo Gamucci’s Mylius 60 Cippa Lippa X was the leading boat in IRC 0. In ORC, Roberto Bosio’s XR-41 Crabx – Aquarama - Fraber led the overall standings ahead of Salvatore Costanzo’s QQ7 and Leonardo Servi’s double handed Comet Scricca, sailed with Franco Manzoli, produced one of the race’s outstanding smaller boat performances.
In Genoa, Yacht Club Italiano became the hub for the final act of the regatta. The Loro Piana al fresco lounge was alive with stories from the course, with sailors welcomed ashore by pasta al pesto, fresh focaccia and the shared emotion of finishing one of the Mediterranean’s great classics. The scene captured the spirit of the event: competition at sea, elegance ashore, and superb Genovese hospitality.
The 2026 Loro Piana Giraglia belonged to many winners. To Wallycento V and Atalanta II in the Maxi inshore series. To Django WR, Thetis, Flying Dolphin and Fremito D’Arja in the Saint-Tropez classes. To ARCA SGR for line honours. To Crabx, QQ7 and Scricca under ORC. To Cippa Lippa and Le Lupin under IRC. But above all, to Arkas Blue Moon, the Turkish dragon that rose from the fleet to win overall.
The 73rd edition confirmed the Loro Piana Giraglia as a regatta of international standing with well over one thousand sailors from 49 different countries taking part. Combining elegance with sporting edge, it is historic without standing still, and prestigious because it remains deeply human. Owners, professional sailors, youth teams, double handed crews and Corinthian sailors all share the same course, the same rock, the same uncertainty and the same welcome in Genoa.
Loro Piana Deputy Chairman, Pier Luigi Loro Piana who was at the helm of ClubSwan 80 My Song for the regatta commented:
“The Giraglia is a traditional race and a very important one in the Mediterranean. Every sailor wants to be here, but you always start with a little emotion because you never know what will happen. There can be strong wind, there can be no wind, and this year we had everything from moderate to very light conditions. It is always a technical challenge, and you need concentration, commitment and sometimes a little luck.
“For Loro Piana, sailing is a very natural connection. It is a way to interpret nature: the sea, the wind, the beauty of the world around us. We have to be grateful for that, and also protect it. Sailing expresses style, lifestyle, beauty and elegance, all the things that Loro Piana wants to represent. This edition was especially enjoyable. Saint-Tropez gave everyone freedom, warmth and atmosphere, and the Loro Piana Lounge became a real meeting place for sailors.”
From Saint-Tropez to Genoa, the Loro Piana Giraglia 2026 was a celebration of excellence, seamanship and style. It was a race shaped by light winds, hard choices and fine margins. It was also a reminder that the finest regattas are measured not only by trophies, but by the stories sailors carry home.
The 74th edition of the Loro Piana Giraglia will be held from 11 – 19 June, 2027.
