60th Aegean Rally: The anniversary event sets sail for Syros and Ios

The Aegean Rally celebrates sixty years in the Aegean this year. The second oldest open sea event in Greece, organized by POIATH with the support of the Navy, is preparing to set sail for another year, with this year’s stops in Syros and Ios with a total distance of 300 nautical miles.

On Friday afternoon (18.00) the top boats with experienced sailors will set off from Mikrolimano with the first stop being Ermoupolis of Syros. In other words, they will repeat the Piraeus – Syros route that they did in 1964 in the first Aegean Rally. In the picturesque Ermoupolis, sailors will have the opportunity to tour and be guided in the uniquely beautiful neighborhoods of Ano Syros and have fun with surprise events on the beaches of the island in an event that POIATH and the local authorities want to make them unforgettable.

From Syros, the capital of the Cyclades, the race boats will sail south and will dock at the magnificent Ios, the second stop of the anniversary 60th Aegean Rally. Ios, with its unique beaches and incomparable nightlife, will offer the crews unforgettable moments of entertainment as well as relaxation, so that they can gather the necessary strength to compete in the sailing race, around the island of Ios, which will be organized in the heart of the Aegean. The return route from Ios to Sounio is predicted to be sailing unpredictable as the islands intervening in the route hold their own secrets for the contenders for the prestigious title of race winner.

In the difficult and demanding race organized by POIATH for the 60th year, proving its consistency in the history of the open sea that it has served with dedication since its foundation until today, the country’s leading offshore boats will take part as well as sailors who have already distinguished themselves in the race and are looking for another victory in this anniversary event. The event will include, among others, Olympic medalists of the triangle, such as Takis Mantis and Pavlos Kagialis with the boat “Velos” but also sailing teams with a brilliant tradition in the open sea such as “Optimum S – Samos Steamship” with skippers Pericles Liva and Nikos Lazos who will start for the 30th time.

And this year the “Aegean Rally” also has an environmental mark. On July 28, the crews will carry out a symbolic clean-up of the coast in Ios. This is the action “To save our seas” organized in recent years by the Panhellenic Offshore Sailing Association. In the organization of the 60th Rally of the Aegean, the participating Club is the Nautical Club of Syros, while like every year, this year too the boats of the “Rally of the Aegean” will be accompanied by a ship of the Navy

The program of the 60th Aegean Rally, which includes numerous events in Syros and Ios, is as follows

• Friday 21 July 18:00

Race 1: Faliro – Syros (Ermoupoli), distance 88 NM

• Tuesday 25 July 11:00

Race 2: Syros – Ios, distance 68.50 NM

• Thursday 27 July 11:00

Race 3: “Periplus Ios”, distance 36 NM

• Saturday 29 July 11:00

Race 4: Ios – Sounio, distance 82 NM

The 60th Aegean Rally is organized by the Panhellenic Offshore Sailing Association (POIATH) with the support of the Navy and the exclusive sponsorship for the eighth consecutive year by JOTUN HELLAS. Sponsors are the companies A. KORONAKIS S.A., NISOS beer, the TECHNAVA company, the ONEX shipyard from Neorio in Syros, FRESH LINE cosmetics as well as the G4S-Telematix company that provides the vessel tracking system.

Suppliers are DIRPHYS natural water, LUX orange juice, and CHICAGO sailing shoes. Communication sponsors are the television stations ALPHA, STAR and NOVA, which is also the official television broadcaster of the event. Also communication sponsors are the newspaper KATHIMERINI, the radio station ERA SPORT 101.8, the sports newspaper SPORTIME, the magazines SKIPPER ON ONDECK, SAILING WORLD, and the sports news site APEX.