Scandinavian Gold Cup is a sailing race held annually for 5.5 metre yachts. It is a nation race, meaning that each participant nation can send only one boat/team. Despite its name, it has been an international competition almost through its entire history, and participating is not limited to Scandinavian nations. The event has been held every year since 1919 (with exception of 1920 and 1940–46) making it one of the oldest active sailing trophies.

History

The Cup was originally established by one of the oldest Finnish yacht clubs,

Nyländska Jaktklubben Nyländska Jaktklubben (NJK), ''Nyland Yacht Club'', is a yacht club in Helsinki, Nyland (Finland). History The club was founded on March 4, 1861 with the approval of its constitution by Tsar Alexander II. His brother, Admiral-General Grand Duk ...

(NJK) in 1919, to celebrate newly achieved Finnish independence, promote sailing and improve relations between Finnish and Swedish yacht racers. As such, it was a Cup for Scandinavian yachts only. At first, the Cup was a challenge competition between Finland and Sweden and it was raced with 40m² Skerry cruisers. The first event was won by Swedes. In 1922, the event was handed over to the Scandinavian Yacht Racing Union (SYRU), which created an international competition based on the now-popular International

6 Metre The International Six Metre class is a class of classic racing yachts. Sixes are a '' construction class'', meaning that the boats are not identical but are all designed to meet specific measurement formula, in this case International rule. At ...

class. It was intended to replace older

One Ton Cup The One Ton Cup is a trophy presented to the winner of a sailing competition created in 1899 by the Cercle de la voile de Paris (CVP). Synopsis The One Ton Cup regattas were at the beginning of races between one-tonner sailing dinghies, acc ...

as an international prize for smaller, more affordable racing yachts. 1926 was the first year when competitors from outside the Nordic countries were allowed to enter and the Cup was soon established as one of the most coveted in the sailing world, attracting famous designers and competitors, including

America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one f ...

winners. By end of the 1930s, increasing costs began to decrease popularity of the

6mR The International Six Metre class is a class of classic racing yachts. Sixes are a '' construction class'', meaning that the boats are not identical but are all designed to meet specific measurement formula, in this case International rule. At ...

class and it was gradually replaced by cheaper

5 Metre 5 Metre is a development sailing class of French origin. History The 5 Metre rule was created in France in 1929 and not a according of the International rule in contrast to other Metre yachts. See also * 5.5 Metre References {{Reflist Externa ...

and 5.5 Metre classes. The Gold Cup was raced with 5.5 metre boats from 1953 onwards. It has continued to be raced annually, with the exception of 1986, when two competitions were held. The 2006 Cup was held in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, involved 11 nations and was for the first time won by a Dutch team. The Cup held its

centennial {{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation) A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years. Notable events Notable centennial events at a ...

edition in July 2019.

Editions

40m² Skerry cruiser

6 metre

5.5 metre

{{notelist

References

External links

5.5 Metre class association

* ttp://www.5point5.ch/documents/results/GCwinners53_2006.pdf 40m² Skerry cruisers 5.5 Metre (keelboat) 6 Metre (keelboat) Sailing competitions Yachting races Recurring sporting events established in 1919