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RORC Promotes Second Baltic Sea Race This July

7th April 2024
The  Infiniti 52 Tulikettu
The Infiniti 52 Tulikettu Credit: Tim Wright

The second edition of the Baltic Sea Race will start in Helsinki, Finland, on 27 July 2024.

This new 635nm offshore race is attracting a diverse range of boats eager to take on a new challenge, racing to win The Baltic Trophy for the best corrected time under IRC.

Baltic Sea Race
Passion for the sea is ever present in Finland’s capital, Helsinki, with centuries of seafaring tradition. The sea is prominently featured in Finland’s folklore and literature; the Finns are fanatical about the Baltic Sea. The Roschier Baltic Sea Race is organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club and supported by the City of Helsinki, as well as the major yacht clubs and racing organisations in Finland: Nyländska Jaktklubben (NJK), Finnish Offshore Racing Association (AMP), Helsingfors Segelklubb (HSK), FINIRC and the Xtra Stærk Ocean Racing Society.

Carkeek 52 Rán Photo: Tim WrightCarkeek 52 Rán Photo: Tim Wright

Niklas Zennstrom’s Carkeek 52 Rán (SWE) is confirmed for the 635-mile Roschier Baltic Sea Race. Zennstrom hails from Sweden and will also race in the 350-mile Gotland Runt, which takes place three weeks before the Roschier Baltic Sea Race. The two races provide a thousand miles of offshore racing in the Baltic summer.

One of Rán’s main competitors will be Infiniti 52 Tulikettu (FIN). One of the world’s most advanced grand-prix racing yachts, Tulikettu sports DSS side-foils and all carbon-fibre build. Team Tulikettu’s primary goal is to be the first all-Finnish crew to win RORC’s important offshore races.

Arto Linnervuo Photo: Pepe KorteniemiArto Linnervuo Photo: Pepe Korteniemi

“The Roschier Baltic Sea Race is unique, a new experience for many sailors from overseas,” commented Tulikettu’s Finnish owner Arto Linnervuo. “Teams will experience racing on a new course which goes around three lighthouses. There are plenty of affects from the land, and as we saw in 2022, the gradient wind can be anything from really light to strong. The race is attracting professional teams racing high performance boats and also the amateur teams racing production yachts, the race is really important to promote racing in The Baltic. In Finland there is a huge amount of passion for sailing, and I am sure everyone who races this year, will feel that embrace!”

Published in RORC
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THE RORC:

  • Established in 1925, The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) became famous for the biennial Fastnet Race and the international team event, the Admiral's Cup. It organises an annual series of domestic offshore races from its base in Cowes as well as inshore regattas including the RORC Easter Challenge and the IRC European Championship (includes the Commodores' Cup) in the Solent
  • The RORC works with other yacht clubs to promote their offshore races and provides marketing and organisational support. The RORC Caribbean 600, based in Antigua and the first offshore race in the Caribbean, has been an instant success. The 10th edition took place in February 2018. The RORC extended its organisational expertise by creating the RORC Transatlantic Race from Lanzarote to Grenada, the first of which was in November 2014
  • The club is based in St James' Place, London, but after a merger with The Royal Corinthian Yacht Club in Cowes now boasts a superb clubhouse facility at the entrance to Cowes Harbour and a membership of over 4,000