On 18th June 1983, in Newport, Rhode Island, Azzurra took part in her first race for the Challenger Series of the 25th America's Cup. That day the opponent was France III and Azzurra claimed victory, the first in a long series that took the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda’s 12 Metre yacht all the way to the semi-finals of the qualification stage.
This endeavour, supported by H.H. the Aga Khan and Gianni Agnelli, would touch the hearts of Italians and go down in the history of sailing in the country. Azzurra's crew was led by skipper Cino Ricci and helmsman Mauro Pelaschier, with an organisational structure supported by 17 companies, entrusted to Gianfranco Alberini, Riccardo Bonadeo and Luca Cordero di Montezemolo.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary, during the dinner held at the YCCS on 18th June, a short film was screened, which is now available online.
Forty years on, the main protagonists recount the sporting feat that popularised sailing in Italy for the first time, and brought the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda onto the international stage.
The short film includes interviews with Princess Zahra Aga Khan, Mauro Pelaschier, Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, Riccardo Bonadeo, Tiziano Nava, Nicolò Reggio, Nicola Sironi, Patrizia Ferri, Andrea Vallicelli, Enrico Isenburg, Carlo Borlenghi and Jacopo Marchi.
The 40th anniversary of Azzurra continues to be retold through the recollections of the main protagonists interviewed for the short film. A series of clips highlighting various anecdotes will be posted on the YCCS Instagram account throughout the year.