Congressional Cup to return in 2021

LONG BEACH—Coronavirus forced this year’s Congressional Cup to be canceled, but the 56 th edition of the “grandfather of match racing” will return in 2021, Long Beach Yacht Club’s race organizers announced.

The 56th Congressional Cup is scheduled to take place May 11-16, 2021. The Grade One sailing competition was founded and hosted by Long Beach YC in 1965. The regatta is, according to yacht club staff, a “pioneer of on-the-water umpiring that is the standard in yacht racing today.”

Congressional Cup’s return means it will also be an official world championship event for the World Match Racing Tour. It is also one of the major regattas for top match racing skippers who are seeking a spot in the 2021 Match Racing World Championship.

“The level of competition at the Congressional Cup is always exceptional, and a long-time favorite event of the World Match Racing Tour,” World Match Racing Tour Executive Director James Pleasance said in a statement. “As the event takes place in May, it will be one of the early opportunities for skippers to pit themselves against their rivals for the 2021 world title.”

This year’s Congressional Cup lineup will be headlined by six World Match Racing Tour skippers; two wild-card spots will be filled by the winner of the Ficker Cup, which will be held May 6-8, 2021 at Long Beach YC.

The regatta will be held in match racing format, allowing teams to compete against each other in multiple one-on-one races. There will also be a double round robin, semifinals, petite finals and championship round.

The 2020 iteration of the Congressional Cup was set to be held April 29 to May 3 but was canceled due to Covid-19 restrictions. Long Beach YC previously hosted the Congressional Cup in April 2019.

Ian Williams of Great Britain won the last running of the Congressional Cup.

“Williams … scrambled up the leaderboard through an international field of top-ranked match racing skippers after a slow start at the five-day series,” Long Beach YC staff said about Williams’ win in 2019. “Warming up in the California sunshine, six-time match racing world champion Williams and his Team GAC Pindar subsequently enjoyed an 11-match winning streak, eliminating foe Taylor Canfield (USA) in the semis and striking out Scott Dickson (USA) in the finals, to win the iconic Crimson Blazer.

“Doing so, Williams secured his fourth Congressional Cup title: a feat matched by an elite few, including Canfield, Gavin Brady, Rod Davis and Peter Holmberg,” the Long Beach YC statement continued.

This year’s race will open with a practice day on May 11, followed by five days of official racing.

Racing is scheduled to start at noon, each day, with all competitors sailing in a fleet of identical 37-foot Catalina keelboats.

Everyone racing in a one-design formats, according to race organizers, guarantees “an even platform and exciting competition.”

Spectators can watch the Congressional Cup from Long Beach’s Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier.