Madrid begins the countdown to the 38 Copa del Rey MAPFRE

For a fourth year in a row, Madrid has hosted the official start to the countdown to one of the most important regattas on the Mediterranean sailing calendar, and an essential part of summer in Mallorca: the Copa del Rey MAPFRE. One hundred people including sponsors, journalists and guests have attended the presentation, held at the head offices of Fundación MAPFRE in Madrid.
 
Guests included José Manuel Inchausti, the CEO of MAPFRE Iberia; Manuel Terroba, the new president of BMW Group Spain and Portugal; Eva Piera, Group Chief External Relations officer for MAPFRE; and Javier Sanz, President of the Real Club Náutico de Palma.
 
Eva Piera, followed by the Director of the Regatta Manuel Fraga, opened the presentation, before handing over to Javier Sanz, President of the organising club, who emphasised his gratitude for the support of the regatta sponsors, headed by MAPFRE,
“Without the huge trust and incredible involvement of our sponsors, this regatta would not be the referential worldwide event that it is.”
 
In its last edition, the Copa del Rey MAPFRE beat all previous participation records, with the Real Club Náutico de Palma at 110% of its capacity, gathering a huge variety of 152 boats, distributed in 13 classes, that competed across five different racing areas.
 
This year, rather than aiming for similar figures, Sanz explained,
 
“Our goal is to offer all participants an edition with plenty of novelties; combining the competitive spirit of the regatta, with a marked element of innovation, as has been its legacy from the very beginning. Since it was established 38 years ago, the Copa del Rey MAPFRE continues to be more vibrant than ever, attracting sailors from all across the globe.”
 
Amongst the novelties this year, of special mention is the inclusion of an all-women’s class for the very first time, ensuring that there will be a women’s champion in this year’s Copa del Rey MAPFRE. Another great novelty is the new classification system, which will ensure utmost excitement in the competition to the very last day.
 
Furthermore, of special importance is the environmental management of the event, which as Javier Sanz emphasised,
 
“It is our intention that the inevitable impact of the event, continues to decrease, and as a first step, we have made the decision to eliminate all single-use plastic packaging from all of the departments involved in the event’s organisation.”
 
“We are installing water fountains at different points around the club, and will provide refillable containers to all participants. This system was established as a pilot project in our last major regatta, the Sail Racing PalmaVela, and the response of participants and the ensuing results were incredibly satisfying. The Copa del Rey MAPFRE has been steadily moving towards its excellence, adjusting and changing direction to incorporate new ideas, and to cater to the demands of boat owners, and the sensitivity of our society,” explained the President of the RCNP.
 
José Manuel Inchausti emphasised the importance of this sporting event in representing the human capacity of resilience, effort and hard work, as demonstrated by the participating teams,
 
“At MAPFRE we are great fans of sailing, a sport that perfectly represents the values of the insurance company, where we understand that without effort, nothing is possible. MAPFRE shares the sailors’ continual desire for improvement, commitment and innovation in achieving their goals,” explained the CEO of MAPFRE Iberia.