Long-awaited Rolex China Sea Race returns to Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour after a five-year hiatus

Asia’s most historic open water race will see the city’s former Asian Games sailing team members competing

The Rolex China Sea Race, hosted by the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, is taking place today (April 5, 2023), and it is the first time the 61-year-old biennale race is back in our city’s Victoria Harbour after a five-year hiatus. Rolex, with its ties with the sailing community, has been the event’s title sponsor since 2008.

This year’s competition, which will start at Victoria Harbour this morning at 11.20am, will take sailors on a 565-nautical mile journey (1,046 kilometres) across the South China Sea to Subic Bay in the Philippines. The offshore course is noted for its challenging nature and will be a test of the teams’ sailing skill, energy, persistence and team spirit.

Above The Rolex China Sea Race start is closely contested as the frontrunners aim to gain an early advantage (Photo: courtesy of Daniel Forster / Rolex)

Nineteen boats have joined the race: 15 Hong Kong entrants, three from the Philippines and one from mainland China. Among Hong Kong’s participants are Owen Wong, Dominic Law Yat-fung, and their former team coach Jono Rankine—all of whom took part in the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. For the Rolex China Sea Race they will be part of the crew of Happy Go, a TP52 grand prix racing yacht favoured for its speed and performance.

Meanwhile, the president of the Philippine Sailing Association Ernesto Echauz, who has won this trophy in 1998 and 2008, will be taking part and said during the April 3 press conference that the Rolex China Sea Race is on every Filipino sailor’s bucket list.

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Crew:HAPPY GO HKG 2598 NIE HUA TP52 1.401 "HONG KONG, CHINA" IRC RACER

Above From left: Dominic Law Yat-fung, Tiger Mok, Owen Wong and Jono Rankine are part of “Happy Go” crew (Photo: courtesy of Rolex)

With the weather forecast foreseeing two low-pressure troughs in the South China Sea and a high-pressure trough in the middle on the race day, Law expects drastic changes in wind directions, which will impact the outcome of the race.

However, the sailors are used to weathering uncertain conditions. Cameron Ferguson, the race chairman of Rolex China Sea Race 2023, said at the press conference that the pandemic created additional challenges for the racers.

“The last race was in 2018, [and] with Covid-related issues preventing our return until this year, it has taken a huge effort by competitors to prepare the yachts and their crew to race again,” he said. “But yacht owners and crew have risen to the challenge. Given the long lead times to prepare for such an event and with restrictions only recently being eased, we are delighted to have a wide-ranging list of Hong Kong participants and also entries from mainland China and overseas.”

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Long-awaited Rolex China Sea Race returns to Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour after a five-year hiatus