Over 50 Spanish crews start Olympic cycle at Princess Sofia Trophy Mallorca

A total of 52 crews will compete under the umbrella of the Royal Spanish Sailing Federation in the 54th Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by FERGUS Hotels, the regatta that kicks off the new season for all Olympic classes.

The Spanish pre-Olympic sailing team starts the new Olympic cycle at the 54th Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by FERGUS Hotels, which will take place next week in the waters of the Bay of Palma. A total of 52 national team crews, including the pre-Olympic team (25) and the 2032 team (27), are registered in the competition that marks the start of the race to Los Angeles 2028, and among them are notable newcomers, such as the new pairs of Jordi Xammar and Marta Cardona on one hand and Silvia Mas and Alex Marsans on the other in mixed 470, and those of Joan Cardona and Nicole Van der Velden on one side and Tara Pacheco and Pablo García on the other in Nacra 17.

Xisco Gil, Director of Olympic Preparation at the Royal Spanish Sailing Federation (RFEV), highlights the significance of the Trofeo Princesa Sofía as the first major test of the season: "The Sofia has always been a benchmark test for all international teams. We come with a very complete fleet, representing both the pre-Olympic team and the 2032 team, which allows us to assess the starting point against other countries and start working towards the new Olympic campaign."

This start of the Olympic campaign is marked by significant changes within the Spanish team. In mixed 470, Catalan Jordi Xammar, bronze at Tokyo 2020 and fourth at Paris 2024, begins a new stage alongside Mallorcan Marta Cardona, world junior champion in 420 in 2022, following the retirement of Nora Brugman from Olympic sailing, and they will be present at Sofia as the first major test for the duo. In this class, Catalan Silvia Mas also has a new crewmate, fellow Catalan Alex Marsans, with whom she debuted at the Lanzarote International Regatta with a second place.

In 49er FX, after Tamara Echegoyen's departure from the Olympic race, Mallorcan Paula Barceló takes the helm and joins Canarian María Cantero, but they will not participate in the Princesa Sofía.

In Nacra 17, Canarian Tara Pacheco will compete alongside her coach from Paris 2024, Pablo García, while Balearic Joan Cardona, Finn bronze medallist at Tokyo 2020, forms a new team with Nicole Van der Velden, with whom he already shares a catamaran in the SailGP circuit. Both crews will test the waters of the Bay of Palma next week.

In 49er, Olympic champions Diego Botín and Florian Trittel have decided to continue in Olympic sailing to try to revalidate their gold in Los Angeles 2028, but this first year of the cycle will limit their Olympic activity to the World Championship and focus on the SailGP circuit, where they just won the Grand Prix of San Francisco.

Also continuing the Olympic race are Catalan Gisela Pulido (Formula Kite female), Balearic Nacho Baltasar (iQFOiL male) and Andalusian Pilar Lamadrid (iQFOiL female), and all three will compete in the 54th edition of the Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by FERGUS Hotels.

Most members of the Spanish pre-Olympic sailing team and the 2032 team, composed of young national sailing talents, have gathered in Palma for a pre-season training camp before the start of the Princesa Sofía. Under the leadership of Xisco Gil, for four days the sailors and their coaches worked on campaign planning and attended several sessions with the multidisciplinary team on sports health, nutrition, physiotherapy, physical training, and regulations, as well as conducting on-water training sessions. During the sessions, there was also a strong emphasis on the new tools that the RFEV is implementing for race data analysis and athlete performance.

In the first year of the new cycle, the Federation is working with a large group of athletes in the ten Olympic classes, aiming to ensure equal opportunities and maintain the quality and renewal of the Spanish team. Since 2022, the RFEV has maintained two selections, the pre-Olympic team on one side and the young team on the other, which has its sights set on the next campaign. "This is the second cycle in which we apply this system, and it has already borne fruit - detailed the Director of Olympic Preparation - because now we have 23% more sailors who have met the minimum requirements in terms of results in international competitions to be included in the pre-Olympic team. The exchange of experiences and the transfer of knowledge from one group to another allows us to renew the Olympic team while maintaining a very high level."

Spain arrives strong at the 54th Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by FERGUS Hotels, with high-level crews in all Olympic classes:

In mixed 470, the two new Spanish duos, formed by Jordi Xammar and Marta Cardona and Silvia Mas and Alex Marsans, are aware of the work ahead in terms of team cohesion and knowledge of the boat for the new crew members. In Nacra 17, the Mallorcan regatta will also witness the competition debut of the two national crews, Joan Cardona and Nicole Van der Velden on one side, and Tara Pacheco and Pablo García on the other.

In 49er, the brothers Martín and Jaime Wizner stand out at the Princesa Sofía, having shown solid progression, as well as Conrad Konitzer and Antonio Torrado, another young duo with international projection. In 49er FX, the main Spanish options in the waters of the Bay of Palma are the crews formed by Alicia Fras along with Elena Barrio, and Patricia Suárez with Melania Henke, both with good performance in preparatory regattas.

In iQFOiL, Pilar Lamadrid and Nacho Baltasar lead the national representation, with the goal of consolidating their international position at the start of the campaign. Andrea Torres also competes in the female category.

In Formula Kite, Gisela Pulido remains the major Spanish reference in the female category, with a consolidated trajectory and the goal of establishing herself among the world's best at the start of the cycle, with the opportunity granted by the changes in the class. In the male category, Jacobo Espí and Alex Climent, who already competed in the previous cycle for Spanish qualification for Paris 2024, stand out.

In ILCA 6 and ILCA 7, the main Spanish bets will likely be names like Lara Himmes and Isabel Hernández in the female category, and Joel Rodríguez and Leo Barreto in the male category, all in full development within the pre-Olympic team alongside other outstanding sailors.

With 86 crews registered, Spanish participation in the 54th Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by FERGUS Hotels remains consistent with the previous edition, consolidating the national presence in one of the key events on the international Olympic class calendar. This continuity reflects the good health of the sporting project promoted by the RFEV, which combines the experience of the Olympic team with the projection of the 2032 team and an increasingly broad base of young talents.

"The Spanish participation in the Trofeo Princesa Sofía reflects the continuous commitment of the Federation to the development of strategic classes and the training of new generations," stated Joaquín González Devesa, president of the RFEV. A start of the cycle that marks the path to Los Angeles 2028 with ambition, structure, and a team prepared to face the upcoming challenges.