All eyes are on the Royal Cape Yacht Club Sailing Academy development team, who are sponsored by Alexforbes in their historic bid to win this iconic regatta. (Photo: supplied)
- The Cape2Rio 2023 race kicked off in Cape Town Monday.
- The regatta will feature 16 boats chasing victory.
- The Alexforbes ArchAngel is a young crew to watch.
- Just Jinjer’s Ard Matthews will also be taking part in this year’s race.
Cape Town offered the perfect climate for the start of the 2023 edition of Cape2Rio 2023 race on Monday.
All the teams left the Cape Royal Yacht Club early in the afternoon to line up for the start, and it was the Premier of the Western Cape, Alan Winde, who fired the cannon at exactly 14:00, marking the start of this year’s race.
The Cape2Rio Yacht Race began almost 49 years ago and was previously known as the South Atlantic Yacht Race.
Sixteen boats compete for top honors in this year’s regatta as they sail the 3,300 nautical miles to Rio de Janeiro, South America.
“Two are multihulls that compete against each other, and the remaining 14 are monohulls that compete against each other on a handicap system,” said Jennifer Burger, Cape2Rio’s race manager.
the archangel
Archangel by Alexforbesa monohull, will have on board the average younger crew, all of whom were trained by the Royal Cape Yacht Club Sailing Academy.
Skipper Sibusiso Sizatu (30), First Mate Daniel Agulhas (29), Renaldo Tshepo Mohale (29), Azile Arosi (22) and Justin Peters (21) hail from Masiphumelele, Khayelitsha, Grassy Park and Athlone in Cape Town.
His sailing dreams of participating in the iconic race came true when Alexforbes offered to sponsor his effort.
“It’s the day we’ve all been waiting for, the most exciting moment of my life,” said skipper Sizatu.
“Our game plan is to stay further south in the Atlantic, closer to shore to keep the wind with us. After Namibia, we sailed and got as close as St. Helena, before changing course to stay with the winds.” Sizatu added. .
To prepare, the team took a few days off, before spending three weeks indoors in their 12m boat.
Wishing the team the best in their quest for career success, Viresh Maharaj, Alexforbes Executive: Strategy & Customer Experience, said Alexforbes identifies with the team’s pioneering spirit of determination to triumph over obstacles and challenging environments.
“Their courage has embodied their personal journeys to the start line, which has been more difficult than the one from Cape Town to Rio. You don’t have to be a sailor to connect with the symbol these youngsters hold for us and we wish them all the best.” in their race,” Maharaj said.
the impossible machine
Singer-songwriter Ard Matthews, of the band Just Jinjer, is also competing in this year’s race. He will be racing his boat The Impossible Machine (TIM).
According to a statement on the Cape2Rio website, Matthews will be “accompanied by a team with vast experience and from all walks of life to best represent the spirit of the race.”
You will also have a mobile studio on the ship for the purpose of recording music during the voyage.
Followers can follow live tracking on www.cape2rio.live.
READ ALSO: “The thrill of racing is my favorite thing about sailing”: A young SA sailor ready to take on Cape2Rio
