Maltese Falcon II wins IRC Class at the 62nd Malta – Syracuse Race

Lee Satariano’s Artie III establishes new course record

The Royal Malta Yacht Club and the Lega Navale Italiana (Sezione Siracusa) hosted the 62nd edition of the Malta – Syracuse Race. 

The race is the oldest regatta in the Mediterranean and has always attracted a sizeable fleet with some very important names. This year’s race did not disappoint.  Participating boats saw a healthy mix ranging from fully carbon racing boats to cruiser/racer boats, and cruiser boats each having the potential of winning.

Starting just outside Marsamxett Harbour, the fleet had a slow start as they attempted to find wind on their way up towards the South Comino Channel and past Gozo before heading towards Syracuse on a 105 nautical mile course.

With variable winds blowing between four to eight knots and several instances where it died completely, Lee Satariano’s Artie III was able to break the course record which now stands at twenty-four hours, fifty minutes, and forty seconds, beating the previous record – also established by Artie III by an hour, five minutes and thirty-one seconds.

Commenting after the Race, Satariano remarked that “It was good to be back participating in the Malta-Syracuse race, despite the very light winds, which were even lighter 30 miles to the finish which took just under twelve hours” 

The ORC Overall Class was won by Dominguin, who also won the ORC cruising Class and the IRC Overall was won by Maltese Falcon II skippered by Jonathan Camilleri Bowman and Adrian Gauci Borda. Mario Debono’s Janissah was presented with the IRC Cruiser’s winning trophy. 

“The Malta – Syracuse Race is a historical race, which brings together two well-established yacht clubs together,  to race in a highly competitive yet friendly environment. It was nice to welcome back our Italian friends to the Club, some of which have been participating in this race for many years” said David Cremona, Commodore, Royal Malta Yacht Club “A special thank you goes to both Clubs and their dedicated volunteers whose passion for sailing sees them contribute so much time to the sport”.

62^nd Malta – Syracuse Race Results