| For the first time in the six-year history of the AEGEAN 600, the Silver Cup of the event passed into French hands. After two consecutive German victories (2005 Best Buddies, 2024 Black Pearl), the boat PALANAD 4 , skippered by Antoine Magre, won the 600 nautical mile battle in the overall IRC standings from the also French DAGUE 5 of Frederic Puzin and the Greek AIOLOS of Giorgos Prokopiou. |
” PALANAD 4 is a new boat, it has only been on the open sea for a year and this was its first major race. It was a fantastic experience and we are thrilled to have won. It was a very tough test, congratulations to all the crews and to the organizers of the AEGEAN 600. It is an incredible experience to pass through the Greek islands. We enjoyed the Greek hospitality and be sure that we will return in a year, ” commented the owner of PALANAD 4. Olivier Magre, who was delighted to receive the prestigious trophy at yesterday’s awards ceremony at the Technological Park in Lavrio.
In the ORC category, the first place went to the American FINAL FINAL ahead of the Italian PROSECCO DOC SHOKWAVE, which also won the LINE Honour of this year’s event, with MARY S from the Czech Republic in third place.
Among the Greek distinctions, a special place in the 6th AEGEAN 600 was the first place in the IRC MAXI category for AIOLOS , skippered by Giorgos Prokopiou, in a repeat of the distinction he had achieved in 2024.
The same boat was in third place in the IRC and 6th in the ORC. Paris Kyriakopoulos’ XIPHOS finished the race in 2nd place in the ORC One and 7th in the IRC One, while Stratis Andreadis’ MELITI was 7th in the IRC MAXI.
Fourth place in the ORC Double Handed for Periklis Livas’ OPTIMUM 4 , 5th for Spyros Papantoniou’s AIOLIA in the IRC Two and 6th in the same category for Evi Delidou’s AETHER .
And meltemi and bounatsa in the Aegean…
The Aegean Sea, however, for yet another AEGEAN 600 event, “tested” the sailors of the 71 boats in total that began their journey on Sunday, July 5 from the Temple of Poseidon in Sounio. The 700 and more sailors who participated in the marathon of 600 non-stop nautical miles saw Aeolus for six days playing his own different game each day. It is indicative that in Kasos the wind reached up to 45 nautical miles while several boats got stuck due to apnea in Mykonos.
The crew of the XIPHOS boat experienced the double side of the coin for good. “The Aegean Sea is, obviously, a very interesting sea. We saw up to 43 knots in the passage of Kasos and then, after Mykonos, we found ourselves immobilized with zero wind,” commented skipper Paris Kyriakopoulos characteristically and concluded: “This is the nature of offshore racing, where not all boats face the same conditions at the same time. We were quite unlucky to fall into this barometric low. Nevertheless, it was an amazing race, we really enjoyed it and, from a tactical point of view, it was one of the greatest challenges we have ever faced. It was a race that offered us great pleasure.”
The award ceremony was attended, among others, by the Deputy Minister of Health, Mr. Marios Themistocleous, the President of the Hellenic Tourism Organization, Ms. Angela Varela, the Regional Councilor, Ms. Vasiliki Kavallari, the President of the Association of Olympic Participants, Ms. Voula Kozompoli, the President of the Association of Greek Olympic Champions, Ms. Stavroula Zygouri, representatives of the General Staff of the Navy and the Chief of the Hellenic Coast Guard, the Mayor of Lavreotiki, Dimitris Loukas, personalities from the shipping and business worlds, as well as representatives of sponsors and supporters of the event.
The crews of the 71 boats from 21 countries that participated in the 6th AEGEAN 600 renewed their appointment for the next event, which will start on Sunday, July 4, 2027.
Detailed results by category:
Line Honors: PROSECCO DOC SHOCKWAVE 3 (ITA) Claudio Demartis’s
IRC Overall
- PALANAD 4 (FRA) Antoine Magre
- DAGUET 5 (FRA) Frederic Puzin
- AIOLOS (GRE) George Prokopiou
IRC Zero
- PALANAD 4 (FRA) Antoine Magre
- DAGUET 5 (FRA) Frederic Puzin
- AIOLOS (GRE) George Prokopiou
IRC One
- FOREVER K (ITA) Claudio Bernoni
- VARUNA (USA) Chris Hemans
- CHACAL (TUR) Oguz Ayan
IRC Two
- COCODY (FRA) Richard Fromentin
- KARPO IDRJA (SLO) Maks Vrecko & Andrey Jereb
- LIBERTINE (ITA) Marco Paolucci
IRC Three
- BOGATYR (UAE) Igor Ritov
- COLOMBRE (ITA) Massimo Juris
- VALENTINA (TUR) Viktor Zakharov
IRC Double Handed
- COLOMBRE (ITA) Massimo Juris
- PNEUMA (POL) Andrey Rozycki
- LIBERTINE (ITA) Marko Paolucci
Maxi
- AIOLOS (GRE) George Prokopiou
- PROSECCO DOC SHOKWAVE (ITA) Lorenzo Bressani
- BIG SKY (SLO) Zbigniew Gutkowski
ORC Overall
- FINAL FINAL (USA) Russell Whitworth
- PROSECCO DOC SHOKWAVE (ITA) Lorenzo Bressani
- MARY S (CZE) Peter Podunavac
ORC Zero
- FINAL FINAL (USA) Russell Whitworth
- PROSECCO DOC SHOKWAVE (ITA) Lorenzo Bressani
- FOREVER K (ITA) Claudio Bernoni
ORC One
- ABOAT TIME (BUL) Petar Dimitrov
- XIPHOS (GRE) Paris Kyriakopoulos
- DARKWOOD (GBR) Michael O’ Donnell
ORC Two
- KARPO IDRIJA (SLO) Maks Vrecko & Andrey Jereb
- XCALIBUR (GRE) Darren Wright
- BE CALM (CZE) Vitek Sprdlk
ORC Three
- MARY S (CZE) Peter Podunavac
- VALENTINA (TUR) Victor Zakharov
- PNEYMA (POL) Andrzej Rozyski
ORC DoubleHanded
- PNEUMA (POL) Andrezej Rozycki
- COLOMBRE (ITA) Massimo Juris
- MOWGLI OF PORTSMOUTH (ESP) Patrick & Vincent Harris
MOCRA:
- QUICK DECISION (GBR) Stuart Austin
- TURBOLENTA (ITA) Marcello Bellacicca
More information here
*Photos: Nikos Alevromytis , DeeaBuzdugan , Vangelis Fragoulis & Stavros Hampakis
ROLEX is the official watch of the event
R OLEX has always been associated with activities driven by passion, excellence, absolute precision, the constant pursuit of perfection and team spirit. For the third consecutive year, Rolex will be present at the AEGEAN 600 as the OFFICIAL WATCH of the event. The Aegean 600 is one of the 600 nautical mile sailing races supported by R OLEX , as part of its 71-year association with the sport of sailing. The participating crews will face the exciting challenges and unique features of this race, as in the historic Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, Rolex Fastnet Race and Rolex Middle Sea Race. There is a natural relationship between R OLEX and international sailing races, where charting a successful course requires unwavering commitment, rich experience and keen intuition to face the constant changes of wind, strong currents and wave power. The 600 nautical mile course encompasses most of the Aegean Sea. The AEGEAN 600 is one of the largest foreign-flagged yacht races of its kind and is of particular importance for the promotion of Greece worldwide.
The AEGEAN 600 is organized by the Panhellenic Offshore Sailing Club (POIATH) with co-organizers the Region of Attica and Olympic Marine as well as with the contribution of the Ministry of Tourism , the Deputy Ministry of Sports and the General Secretariat of Sports.
ROLEX will be the official watch of the event for the third consecutive year.
Sponsors The organizers of the race are the Hellenic Tourism Organization (EOT) and KORONAKIS, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of synthetic ropes and wire ropes. Supporters are IMA, the international MAXI boat association, the construction company KERAMEIKOS – ATHENS, PANTAENIUS, a multinational boat insurance company, TECHNOHULL, a manufacturer of inflatable & polyester boats and X-YACHTING , a boat rental company.
The official transportation partner will be MERCEDES-BENZ. The event’s collaborating group is the Aegean Nautical Club based at Olympic Marine.
Official suppliers will be electric outboard motors Torqeedo empowered by Yamaha , sailing equipment company Helly Hansen and Dole bananas.
Communication sponsors of the match is the television station SKAI , which is also the official television broadcaster of the event, as well as the newspaper KATHIMERINI. Also Skipper on Deck, The YachtBook, Boats & Yachting Guide, Athens Riviera Journal and Sailing World magazines. Internet services are provided by Interad.
