 Class symbol | |
 TP52 Container at the Audi MedCup races in Cascais, 2011 | |
| Hull | |
|---|---|
| LOA | 15.85 m (52 ft 0 in) |
The Transpac 52 (TP52) is a class of yacht used for competitive 52 Super Series yacht racing, and the Audi MedCup previously, besides the world championship of the class. The class is recognised by the International Sailing Federation which entitles the class to hold an Official World Championships.
The TP52 Class has grown from a non-registered club of like minded yachtsmen inspired by Tom Pollack to a fully member controlled, registered and ISAF recognised Class with a proper set of bylaws, an annual meeting, an executive committee made up out of the members and a class president who also has to be a member.
The original intention was to provide a yacht capable for both inshore and offshore sailing specifically the Transpacific Yacht Race however with the decline in IMS racing, the class became popular in Europe. A professional inshore tour was established for Europe called the MedCup. Recent (2022-23) rule changes [1] help keep the class at the forefront of competitive racing.
TP52 boats are built and sailed to a set of rules which established the original design as a 'box' rule - where the boat must fit within a notional box of specified dimensions. The current rules [2] specify a single masted, fixed keel mono-hull with a bowsprit and a single rudder, with maximum hull length of 15.85 metres (52 ft), beam width of 4.3 metres (14 ft), keel draft of 3.5 metres (11 ft) and spinnaker hoist height of 22.4 metres (73 ft), along with a minimum total weight of 6,975 kilograms (15,377 lb) and maximum keel bulb weight of 3,800 kilograms (8,400 lb).
The unofficial World Championship was held before it got international status and were the keystone of the formation of the class.
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 Miami |  Patches (IRL)Eamon Conneely |  Pegasus 52 (USA)Philippe Kahn |  Beau Geste (CHN)Kark Kwok |
| 2007 Porto Cervo |  Artemis Racing (SWE)Torbjorn Tornqvist | Patches (IRL) Eamon Conneely |  Mean Machine (MON)Peter de Ridder |
The competition changed the nature of the class with it becoming a pinnacle inshore/coastal event for grand prix monohulled yacht racing. The series started off as the MedCup from 2005 to 2011 before evolving in the 52 Super Series.
TP 52s or optimized direct derivatives have won the overall trophy in most of the classic offshore events while racing under the major international handicap systems. Notable results include:
| Race | Distance | Category | Boat Name | Skipper | Elapsed time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 Transpac Race | 2,225 nm | 1st overall | Alta Vita | Bill Turpin (USA) | 7d 12h 20m 29s | Another TP 52, Beau Geste, came 2nd overall. [3] |
| 2004 Newport Bermuda Race | 635 nm | 1st overall | Rosebud | Roger Sturgeon (USA) | 2d 20h 24m 43s | [4] |
| 2004 Chicago to Mackinac | 333 nm | 1st overall | Esmeralda | Makoto Uematsu Ken Read (USA) | 1d 17h 5m | [5] |
| 2005 Transpac Race | 2,225 nm | 1st overall | Rosebud | Roger Sturgeon (USA) | 8d 16h 25m 4s | TP 52s came 1st, 2nd and 3rd overall. [6] |
| 2005 Fastnet Race | 608 nm | 2nd overall | Patches |  Ian Walker (GBR) | 2d 2h 17m 48s | [7] [8] |
| 2006 Hong Kong to Vietnam Race | 673 nm | 1st overall | Island Fling | Paul Winkelmann (IRE) | 2d 0h 16m 5s | [9] |
| 2009 Gotland Runt | 352 nm | 1st overall | Rán | Niklas Zennström (SWE) | [10] | |
| 2010 Cowes-Dinard-St Malo | 151 nm | 1st overall | John Merricks II | Luke McCarthy (GBR) | 21h 24m 03s | Another TP 52, Paprec Recyclage, finished 39 seconds later. [11] |
| 2010 Gotland Runt | 352 nm | 1st overall | Fram XVI |  King Harald V (NOR) | 1d 23h 59m 39s | [12] [13] |
| 2010 Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race | 1,805 nm | 4th overall /2nd in class | John Merricks II | Luke McCarthy (GBR) | 8d 11h 49m 23s | British Keelboat Academy's youth team entry led overall in the opening stages of the race. [14] [15] |
| 2010 Middle Sea Race | 606 nm | 1st overall | Lucky | Bryon Ehrhart (USA) | 3d 3h 16m 25s | [16] |
| 2011 Gotland Runt | 352 nm | 1st overall | Datacom-Lindahl |  Ralf Aspholm (GER) | [17] | |
| 2012 Hong Kong to Hainan Race | 355 nm | 1st overall | Freefire |  Sam Chan (HKG) | 1d 4h 43m 54s | [18] |
| 2013 Hong Kong to Vietnam Race | 673 nm | 1st overall | Lucky | Bryon Ehrhart (USA) | 2d 2h 22m 44s | [9] |
| 2013 Fastnet Race | 608 nm | 1st in class | Pace | Johnny Vincent (GBR) | 2d 21h 15m 7s | [19] |
| 2014 China Sea Race | 565 nm | 2nd overall | Lucky | Bryon Ehrhart (USA) | 2d 21h 45m 22s | [20] |
| 2016 Victoria to Maui | 2,308 nm | 1st overall | Kinetic V |  David Sutcliffe (CAN) | 8d 14h 16m 46s | Another TP52, Valkyrie, took line honours and set a race record of 8d 9h 17m 50s. [21] |
| 2017 Sydney to Hobart | 628 nm | 1st overall | Ichi Ban |  Matt Allen (AUS) | 1d 19h 10m 20s | [22] |
| 2019 Hong Kong to Vietnam Race | 673 nm | 1st overall | Freefire | Sam Chan (HKG) | 2d 0h 27m 55s | [9] |
| 2019 Sydney to Hobart | 628 nm | 1st overall | Ichi Ban | Matt Allen (AUS) | 2d 6h 18m 5s | [23] |
| 2020 Caribbean 600 | 600 nm | 1st overall | Outsider | Bo Teichmann (GER) | 2d 19h 41m 40s | [24] |
| 2021 Sydney to Hobart | 628 nm | 1st overall | Ichi Ban | Matt Allen (AUS) | 3d 3h 42m 29s | Another TP 52, Celestial, came 2nd overall. [25] |
| 2022 Sydney to Hobart | 628 nm | 1st overall | Celestial | Sam Haynes (AUS) | TP 52 also came 2,3,4,5! [26] | |
| Race | Category | Boat Name | Skipper | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 Round the Island Race | 1st Overall | GBR 11152 - Gladiator | Bernard Langley | [27] |
| Race | Category | Boat Name | Skipper | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 ORCi World Championships - Class A | 1st | Hurakan | Marco Serafini | |
| 2014 ORCi World Championships - Class A | 1st | Enfant Terrible | Alberto Rossi | |
| 2015 ORCi World Championships - Class A | 1st | Enfant Terrible | Alberto Rossi | |
| 2016 ORCi World Championships - Class A | 1st | Freccia Rossa | Vadim Yakimenko | |
| 2018 ORCi World Championships - Class A | 1st | Beau Geste | Karl Kwok (HKG) | |
| 2019 ORCi World Championships - Class A | 1st | Xio |  Marco Serafini (ITA) | |
| 2022 ORCi World Championships - Class A | 1st | Beau Geste | Karl Kwok (HKG) | |
| 2023 ORCi World Championships - Class A | 1st | Beau Geste | Karl Kwok (HKG) | [28] |
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