Giovanni Soldini and Maserati ready for a new challenge The Transpac Race sets off on 13th July, a crew race from Los Angeles to Honolulu
John Elkann on board as tailer The official clothing supplier is Zegna Sport Milan, 1st July 2013 – Giovanni Soldini’s next challenge at the helm of Maserati – in the 47th Transpac Race – was presented today in Milan. Together with Soldini will be a nine-member team, including John Elkann.At his company’s headquarters in Milan, Gildo Zegna, CEO of the Ermenegildo Zegna Group, the new clothing partner of the Maserati team, welcomed Giovanni Soldini, John Elkann and the partners Maserati (main sponsor), BSI and Generali, together with journalists and a vast public of friends and fans. The Transpac is a 2,225 nautical-mile crew race from Los Angeles to Honolulu, for both monohulls and multihulls, with a schedule of different start assignments from 8 July, according to the classes in the race. A total of 52 yachts have entered the race, 7 of which in Maserati’s class. Maserati sets off on 13th July. Giovanni Soldini will be on board with an international crew of nine: Guido Broggi, Boris Herrmann, Corrado Rossignoli, Jianghe “Tiger” Teng, Gwenael Riou, Carlos Hernandez, Michele Sighel and John Elkann. The regatta starts by the cliffs off Point Fermin, San Pedro, Los Angeles, and ends in front of Diamond Head’s lighthouse, Oahu, Hawaii (east of Honolulu). The Transpac was first raced in 1906, the year of the great San Francisco earthquake, by Hawaiian sailor Clarence MacFarlane, inspired by the revered Hawaiian leader King Kalakaua’s belief that a regatta to Hawaii would strengthen the islands’ economic and cultural ties to the mainland. The fastest monohull in the history of the event was Alfa Romeo, skippered by Neville Crichton, with a time of 5 days, 14 hours and 36 minutes. “First of all, I would like to thank my partners, Maserati, BSI, Generali, Vodafone and Boero, who haveconfirmed that next year they will again be supporting Maserati’s challenges”, said Giovanni Soldini. “And my thanks also go to the Ermenegildo Zegna Group, which is now part of this adventure. Maserati is in great shape. After two months’ work in the boatyard in San Francisco, she is ready for a new, particularly interesting challenge since this is the first time she will be sailing in a regatta against other competitors. The crew is basically the same as that of the New York-San Francisco record, with a few new members, allowing us to form a larger group with experience of Maserati. I’m also glad that John Elkann will be on board with us: I’ve crossed an ocean with him, he has a great passion for sea and sailing. We’re ready, we can’t wait to set sail”. Updates with videos and images from the boat and a cartography with Maserati’s position will be found at www.maseratisoldini.it (<http://www.maserati.soldini.it/>) and on social networks: Facebook (Giovanni Soldini Pagina Ufficiale, more than 25,000 friends) and Twitter (@giovannisoldini, more than 117,000 followers; @borisherrmann). The challenge is sponsored by Maserati, the main partner, after which the yacht is named, by Swiss bank BSI (Generali Group) and by Generali itself as co-sponsors.
