Audi MedCup Starts Sporting the Four Rings

• Audi becomes the title sponsor of the successful regatta series
• More than 20 high-tech yachts start to the season 12 May
• Team Germany with America`s Cup winner Jochen Schümann

After the successful kick-off last year, AUDI AG has expanded its commitment in international sailing: with immediate effect, Audi is the title sponsor of the Audi MedCup. The popular regatta series comprises six rounds in the Mediterranean, the season starts from 12 to 17 May on the coast of the Spanish tourist town Alicante.
Last year already, Audi was the Premium Partner of the series that has been staged since 2005, sporting its logo on the hull, the forestay and the mast of the high-tech boats. This year, the four rings dominate the presentation both on water and ashore: Audi has assumed responsibility for the visual design of the series as well as for hospitality services, showcases vehicles and provides the entire shuttle fleet with Audi Q7 and Audi A8 cars.

The significance of the series is shown by the large number of participants this year: more than 20 boats of the TP52 class from 14 nations will be starting to the Audi MedCup. The race is also frequently referred to as the “small America’s Cup”, as the sailors compete in this event as well. One of them is Jochen Schümann, who will be in command of the German boat. The 53-year-old Berliner has made a name for himself in Germany as a former “Sailor of the Year” and on a worldwide scale as team boss of the two-time America’s Cup winner Alinghi.

The Audi MedCup season opener at Alicante will be followed by regattas at Marseille (2 to 7 June), Cagliari (30 June to 5 July), Palma (21 to 26 July) and Murcia (25 to 30 August). The finale will be staged at Portimao in the Algarve. The series to which Audi will be giving its name for the next three years is equally popular with fans and contenders.

At each event several races are staged on various courses. The past three years repeatedly showed that in the MedCup seconds often determine victory or defeat. The closeness of the field is attributable to the tightly knit regulations. All crews compete with boats of the Transpac (TP) 52 class featuring a nearly identical construction. And unlike most other regattas, the Audi MedCup offers unadulterated racing on water: the boats race against each other in real time – the one that crosses the finish line first is the winner.

The almost 16-metre boats are the world’s fastest mono-hull offshore sailing yachts. Underneath their outer skin is a wealth of highly sophisticated technology: the materials used for the construction of the roughly 7.5-ton boats include genuine high-tech materials of the type used in Audi’s successful racing cars as well.