Fastnet Challenge Cup winner aims for three in a row. Niklas Zennström’s 72’ mini maxi Rán 2 is hoping to win the Rolex Fastnet Race for an unprecedented third time in a row. Against mounting odds in 2011, Niklas Zennström’s 72-foot Rán 2 became the fourth yacht to claim successive overall race wins. Securing a third victory this year would elevate Rán 2 to the most successful boat in the event’s history.
Should Rán 2 win this year, she will become only the second yacht to win the race overall three times (Jolie Brise is the other), and the first to do so three times in succession: a feat which, in the unpredictable and highly competitive world of offshore racing, would
border on miraculous.
Having won the Fastnet Challenge Trophy in two consecutive events (2009 and 2011), Rán 2 joined the elite club of Jolie Brise (1925, 1929 & 30), Dorade (1931 & 33), Myth of Malham (1947 & 49) and Carina (USA, 1955 & 57).
Tim Powell, Rán 2’s Team Manager, has competed in four round the world races:
“Experiencing the start of the Fastnet is unlike any other offshore race and this year with a record entry it will be a special moment for everybody in the race. I would especially like to wish the young crew of Jolie Brise a great race. I started racing offshore with The Youth Challenge and if you told me then that I would have the chance of winning it three times, I wouldn’t have believed you. For me, The Fastnet will always be a very special race.”
Rolex Fastnext Race. Nikklas Zennstrom’s RÁN. Copyright Rolex / Daniel Forster
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