Nineteen teams from 14 countries competed in the eighth Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup, a biennial regatta hosted by the New York Yacht Club in Newport, Rhode Island. Marblehead’s Corinthian Yacht Club, a first-time participant in this invitational, placed second with 54 points. Since the event was first run in 2009, it has attracted top amateur sailors from 51 of the world’s most prestigious yacht clubs from 22 countries.
The San Diego Yacht Club won the Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup delivering a
consistently strong performance over the week with a score of 43 points overall.
San Diego’s victory in the final race was their only top-four finish of the regatta and gave them
the low score of 43 points, good for an 11-point win over first-time entrant Corinthian Yacht
Club. The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron placed third with 55 points for its best result in three attempts. Rounding out the top five were New York Yacht Club, with 62 points, and Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, with 66 points, for its best finish in seven attempts.
According to San Diego Yacht Club coach Ed Adams, a two-time Rolex U.S. Sailing Yachtsman of
the Year, the top team had two goals this year: achieve the lowest worst score of all the teams
in the regatta and pass the most boats after Mark 1. San Diego’s worst score was a 10th in Race
3, no other team had lower than a 14th. San Diego’s string of 6-5-5-5-5-6 in the other races
showed consistency and an ability to fight back from adversity. Their victory in the race
lowered their average score per race to 5.375 points.
Led by Marblehead helmsman Wade Wadell, a stellar performance was delivered by second
place Corinthian Yacht Club. Waddell noted that many on the Corinthian team applied their
strengths and acquired experience as college sailors and coaches.
“We were comfortable in the shifty conditions as we are college sailors and coaches by training,” Waddell said during the regatta. “The IC37s boats are so high aspect that with 2 knots more pressure you can be going more than 1 knot faster. So, we focused on the pressure and didn’t care as much about the
angle.”
On the final day of racing, in a brisk 20-25 knot breeze, the team excelled showing command of
the boat up and down the course finishing 3rd in the final race securing second place overall.
The Corinthian team included helmsman Wade Waddell, Will Bailey, Miranda Bakos, Evan
Cooke, Andrew Kingston, David Larson, Doug Sabin, Duncan Swain, Juliana Testa and
Tim Wadlow.
Besides the regatta’s characteristics of tight racing and a leaderboard that saw a lot of movement, the eighth Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup showcased a youth movement. Wade Waddell, the Corinthian helmsman, is 26. Jordan Stevenson, helmsman for Royal New Zealand, is 23. Duncan Gregor, the tactician for Royal Hong Kong, is 19 years old.
The ninth Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup will be held in September 2025 and the
Request for Invitation form for the 2024 Resolute Cup, the only surefire pathway for U.S. yacht
clubs looking for a berth in the ninth edition, will go live later this year.
Please click here for results.
Stuart Streuli contributed to this report.
Leigh Blander is an experienced TV, radio and print journalist who has written hundreds of stories for local newspapers, including the Marblehead Reporter. She also works as a PR specialist.
