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Stena Match Cup Sweden

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Stena Match Cup Sweden
Finals in Match Cup Sweden 2016 between Phil Robertson (NZL) och Taylor Canfield (USA).
OrganizerRoyal Gothenburg Yacht Club
Brandspot
Typematch racing final on the World Match Racing Tour
ClassesM32
VenueMarstrand, Sweden
Competitors20
ChampionBjörn Hansen
Most titlesPeter Gilmour (6)
Websitewww.matchcupsweden.com

Match Cup Sweden (previously Swedish Match Cup, Stena Match Cup Sweden) is a sailing event on the World Match Racing Tour held in Marstrand, Sweden in the beginning of July every year. Organizers of Match Cup Sweden are The Royal Gothenburg Yacht Club and Brandspot.

The tournament consists of an open class and a women’s class, both of which compete in match race sailing. It is one of the pivotal events on the World Match Racing Tour, being among the longest running events on the tour. The event has attracted well over 100.000 spectators [1] on an annual basis.

History

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The first edition of Match Cup Sweden was held in 1994, then as Swedish Match Cup. The initiator of the event was Swedish sailing legend Magnus Holmberg,[2] who with the help from The Royal Gothenburg Yacht Club and Swedish Match arranged the first event in Marstrand, Sweden.

Between 1994 and 2002 the tournament used the DS 37 Matchracer boat, until the introduction of the Swedish Match 40 in 2003. The new boat was designed by another sailing legend, Pelle Petterson, specifically for the Swedish Match Tour, which was the equivalent of today’s World Match Racing Tour.

Due to a change of the Swedish legislation prior to the 2006 event, Swedish Match, being a tobacco company, were prohibited of sponsoring the event. Losing its title sponsor, the 2006 event had to be cancelled, only to return in 2007 under the new name ’’’Match Cup Sweden’’’. The organizers then decided to go back to the original DS 37 Matchracer boats.[1]

Hall of Fame

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For the 15th edition of Match Cup Sweden in 2009, the organizers set up a Hall of Fame for to celebrate the already rich history of the event. Two inductees were elected for the opening of the Hall of Fame; Magnus Holmberg and Peter Gilmour.

Magnus Holmberg, Sweden, was inducted for his vital role in the founding and upbringing of the event, arguably being the most important individual of its history. Along with stellar performances on the water, his place in the Hall of Fame was meant to be.

Peter Gilmour, Australia, is, among many big names victorious in Marstrand, the biggest of them all. He celebrated his induction by winning his seventh Match Cup Sweden, meaning that he had won almost half of the editions in the history of the event. A pioneer in matchracing, Gilmour is now both a household name in Marstrand as well as the current acting president of the World Match Racing Tour.

Marstrand seen from the East

Location

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One of the most popular locations among the sailors, Marstrand offers a unique combination of world class sailing and an extraordinary spectators’ arena. The narrow waters on the South side of Marstrand brings the audience within meters from the boats, still providing enough wind to create intense sailing. The picturesque environments that Marstrand and its surroundings offer has single-handedly attracted a great number of both world-class sailors and spectators to the event throughout the years.

Results

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Open class

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Year Champion Runner-up Third place Fourth place
1994 Australia Peter Gilmour United States Ed Baird Sweden Magnus Holmberg New Zealand Russell Coutts
1995 Australia Peter Gilmour United States Ed Baird France Bertrand Pacé Sweden Magnus Holmberg
1996 France Bertrand Pacé New Zealand Russell Coutts Australia Peter Gilmour United States Ed Baird
1997 Australia Peter Gilmour United States Ed Baird Denmark Jesper Bank Sweden Magnus Holmberg
1998 Japan Peter Gilmour[a] Denmark Sten Mohr New Zealand Dean Barker France Bertrand Pacé
1999 Japan Peter Gilmour[a] United States Ed Baird Croatia Tomislav Basic Sweden Magnus Holmberg
2000 New Zealand Dean Barker France Bertrand Pacé Denmark Sten Mohr Sweden Magnus Holmberg
2001 Switzerland Russell Coutts[b] France Luc Pillot Sweden Magnus Holmberg Sweden Björn Hansen
2002 New Zealand Dean Barker Switzerland Russell Coutts[b] United States Ed Baird New Zealand Bertrand Pacé
2003 United Kingdom Chris Law Poland Karol Jabłoński United States Virgin Islands Peter Holmberg Denmark Jesper Bank
2004 New Zealand Russell Coutts Australia Peter Gilmour Sweden Magnus Holmberg United Kingdom Chris Law
2005 Australia Peter Gilmour Sweden Magnus Holmberg New Zealand Dean Barker United States Virgin Islands Peter Holmberg
2006 no races
2007 Sweden Björn Hansen Sweden Magnus Holmberg Denmark Jesper Radich Sweden Mattias Rahm
2008 Sweden Mattias Rahm Australia Torvar Mirsky Sweden Magnus Holmberg France Mathieu Richard
2009 Australia Peter Gilmour France Mathieu Richard France Sebastien Col France Damien Iehl
2010 United Kingdom Ben Ainslie Denmark Jesper Radich Sweden Magnus Holmberg Australia Torvar Mirsky
2011 United Kingdom Ian Williams Sweden Björn Hansen Denmark Jesper Radich Australia Peter Gilmour
2012 Sweden Björn Hansen Australia Peter Gilmour United Kingdom Ian Williams United Kingdom Phil Robertson
2013 Sweden Björn Hansen United Kingdom Phil Robertson Italy Simone Ferrarese Australia Keith Swinton
2014 Sweden Björn Hansen United Kingdom Ian Williams United States Virgin Islands Taylor Canfield Italy Francesco Bruni
2015 Sweden Björn Hansen United Kingdom Ian Williams Australia Keith Swinton United States Virgin Islands Taylor Canfield
  1. ^ a b under Japanese nationality.
  2. ^ a b under Swiss nationality.

Women’s class

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Year Champion Runner-up Third place Fourth place
1999 Denmark Dorte O. Jensen France Christine Briand United States Betsy Alison Sweden Marie Björling
2000 Denmark Dorte O. Jensen United States Betsy Alison Sweden Malin Källström Sweden Marie Björling
2001 Denmark Dorte O. Jensen Sweden Malin Källström Sweden Malin Millbourn New Zealand Sharon Ferris
2002 Sweden Marie Björling Denmark Dorte O. Jensen Sweden Malin Millbourn United States Betsy Alison
2003 Sweden Marie Björling Sweden Malin Källström Denmark Annette Ström Sweden Malin Millbourn
2004 Sweden Marie Björling Denmark Lotte Meldgaard Pedersen France Claire Leroy United States Betsy Alison
2005 Sweden Malin Millbourn Sweden Marie Björling France Claire Leroy Sweden Linda Rahm
2006 no races
2007 no women's class
2008 France Claire Leroy Sweden Anna Kjellberg Sweden Linda Rahm Sweden Jenny Axhede
2009 Australia Katie Spithill Sweden Anna Kjellberg Sweden Linda Rahm United Kingdom Lucy MacGregor
2010 Russia Ekaterina Skudina Netherlands Renee Groeneveld United Kingdom Lucy MacGregor Australia Katie Spithill
2011 France Claire Leroy
2012 no women's class
2013 United States Stephanie Roble
2014 no women's class
2015 no women's class
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References

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  1. ^ a b WMRT.com, Event information.
  2. ^ A Perfect Match, written by Joakim Hermansson, p. 26-29.