Rohan ready to defend Sovereign’s Cup crown

WITH just a little luck, this morning’s first race in the biennial Sovereign’s Cup will have sunshine and breeze marking a return to last weekend’s champagne sailing conditions at Crosshaven during most of the ICRA championships.

The 100-plus boat fleet gathered at Kinsale for four days of what many regard as a hidden gem in the fixtures list, and they could yet be rewarded for their faith in a regatta that combines great racing afloat with a unique venue ashore.

Word is out however and if Jamie McDowell and the crew of Black Fun from New Zealand — who won the special Dubarry prize for most distant entry — were impressed last weekend, they may well return down under and muster more visitors for next time.

Though not strictly a championship in the purest sense, the Sovereign’s Cup raced for under IRC handicap and its counterpart for ECHO handicap, the Portcullis Trophy, are both highly sought-after prizes.

If anything, last weekend will have served as a ‘warm-up’ for the next four days

Defending Sovereign’s Cup holder Eamonn Rohan is now competing with his Quarter tonner ‘Anchor Challenge’ while past-winner and team captain of last year’s victorious Rolex Commodore’s Cup Team, Anthony O’Leary is on his Ker 39 ‘Antix’, and is the 2011 Class Zero national champion following last weekend’s ICRA event.

Quarter-tonners — that have experienced a revival in the past three seasons from their heyday in the mid-1980s when the IOR handicap rule was in worldwide use — have returned to stage their national championships and are a boost to the fleet.

However, in a sign of the times, the entry-limit of 150 boats appears not to be needed this year though organisers at Kinsale Yacht Club have predicted up to 140 boats will take part, involving almost 1,000 participants afloat.