You would have been forgiven for believing you’d travelled back in time if you spent any time along England’s south coast earlier this summer. The Richard Mille Cup 2024 took place in the English Channel between June 2 and 15, where ten restored vintage yachts—all bar one of them at least a century old—clashed in a gruelling test of nautical skill. This was no genteel parade of floating antiques; it was a white-knuckle regatta spanning 255 nautical miles (473km) of offshore racing over eight days, along the English coast and across to France.
The participating yachts represented a who’s who of early 20th-century naval architecture. Mariquita, the overall winner of the Richard Mille Cup 2024, is a gaff cutter built by renowned Scottish yacht designer William Fife III in 1911. This type of vessel represents the peak of yacht design during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a time when gaff cutters dominated competitive sailing.
Moonbeam IV, Richard Mille Cup regatta, sailing classic events, between Falmouth and Le Havre (Photo: courtesy of Harry Kenney-Herbert / DPPI)
Another standout participant was the schooner Viveka, designed by naval architect Starling Burgess and built by Lawley & Son shipyard in Massachusetts in 1929. With its 75 ft deck, she was considered substantial for her time, but is capable of both racing and comfortable cruising.
JP Morgan Jr, son of the famous financier, commissioned Viveka as part of a long tradition of wealthy Americans investing in high- performance yachts. These vessels were not just for leisure—they were also symbols of status and avant-garde technology.
Another interesting competing yacht was the Thalia, which dates back to 1889, and is an exampleof the quality of Victorian-era shipbuilding. That she is still being sailed competitively after more than 130 years is testament to the quality of her original construction.
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Moonbeam IV at the Richard Mille Cup regatta (Photo: courtesy of Eloi Stichelbaut / DPPI)
Individual sailors also shone throughout the regatta. Jacques Caraes, Mariquita’s skipper, displayed exceptional tactical acumen, particularly in the close- quarters racing during the third leg of the race, near the Isle of Wight. And Viveka’s Gery Atkins and Moonbeam IV’s Romain Le Gall engaged in what was described as a “street fight” on the water, bringing out the best performances from these historic vessels in modern racing conditions.
Richard Mille’s support of this race and the vintage yachts goes beyond simple sponsorship. By backing such events, the brand enables a new generation to appreciate the engineering marvels of a bygone era while demonstrating that these vessels can still compete at the highest level.
As the sporting event grows in prestige, it’s a reminder that the manufacture has tapped into a niche that speaks of heritage and high-performance, be it in watches or watercraft. It proves that when it comes to craftsmanship, the past notonly sails alongside the present but often surges ahead.
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