By Di Meek
South Africa's America's Cup Team Shosholoza was third across the finish line in the spectacular fleet of 2 000 yachts competing in Sunday's 16 nautical mile Trieste Barcolana - Europe's biggest international sailing event and the only regatta in the world to set a single start line for so many yachts.
Shosholoza was the first America's Cup class yacht ever to enter the event, which celebrates its 40th edition this year and boasts a set of mind-boggling statistics: 20 000 competing sailors, over 3 000 spectator boats watching on the water and well over a million people enjoying the spectacle and related festivities ashore.
The super light breezes favoured the South African yacht, which was purpose built for the tight windward/leeward courses of America's Cup racing as opposed to the loose reaching conditions of the Barcolana.
The light winds also minimised the chaos of the seemingly endless crush of yachts lining up to cross the comparatively short 1.5 nautical mile start line.
Even so, the South Africans were edged out at the finish by New Zealander Neville Crichton's maxi Alpha Romeo who took the gun in 2hrs 59 min and 43 seconds and has now won the event for the fifth year running.
At the helm of Alpha Romeo was 2007 America's Cup winning skipper Brad Butterworth of the Swiss Team Alinghi with many of his crew on board. Second was the maxi Jena owned by Slovenian Mitja Kosmna who finished in 3 hrs 2 min and 20 seconds.
But it was Team Shosholoza, skippered by Paolo Cian, who set the ships' horns booming and got the biggest cheer from the spectator fleet as they crossed the finish in 3 hrs 9 min 26 seconds, ahead of the RC 44 Black Pearl skippered by Russell Coutts, the three times America's Cup winning skipper, who did the race in 3 hours 10 minutes and 25 seconds.
Shosholoza founding managing director Captain Salvatore Sarno said he was overwhelmed by the Shosholoza fans who crowded the dockside to cheer and support the the South African America's Cup team.
"I have never ever seen anything like this. Incredible. And it is amazing that the crew of an America's Cup yacht can still give so much emotion to the spectators in a regatta like this. It is not true that America's Cup class yachts can only sail at the America's Cup. We expected to come first, or why else did we come here?
"But we had a very good race tactically, our crew did good work in the light wind, we have flown the South African flag all week and we have had fun.
"Now we are looking forward to racing in the Louis Vuitton Pacific Cup in Auckland, New Zealand in February next year and then we want to hold a follow-up America's Cup class event in South Africa in June," said Captain Sarno.