19 World Superyacht Awards 2015 winners

WinWin had to beat stiff competition to scoop this prize, but the gorgeous cruiser/racer seduced our judges. Maybe because Baltic Yachts' 33 metre WinWin balances performance, style and comfort.

Builder: Baltic Yachts
Naval Architect: Javier Jaudenes
Exterior Design: Javier Jaudenes
Interior Design: Design Unlimited

Past winners of Sailing Yacht of the Year: Parsifal III (2006), Maltese Falcon (2007), Meteor (2008), P2 (2009), Hanuman (2010), Zefira (2011), Vertigo (2012), Pumula (2013), Inukshuk (2014).

This was perhaps the most difficult class for the judges to decide as they agreed that all of the yachts were highly attractive, having been built to the most demanding standards with little regard to cost, while their differences largely resulted from their owners’ specific requirements.

The judges considered that every aspect of all four yachts was well thought out and this was demonstrated by the fact that every yacht was singled out as the winner by at least one judge. But each jury member awards marks to every yacht and this means that their second, third and fourth choices are also important in determining the overall result.

When the results of the secret ballot were announced it was 95.2 metre Lürssen yacht  Kismet that narrowly headed the scoreboard. This yacht, they felt, is a true all-rounder combining impeccable construction, with appealing exterior design, great deck areas, and a tasteful interior that suits a wide audience.

Builder: Lürssen Yachts
Naval Architect: Lürssen Yachts
Exterior Design: Espen Øino International
Interior Design: Reymond Langton

Despite their wide range of backgrounds and individual tastes, the judges were of one mind in deciding a winner for this class – a degree of agreement rarely seen in this competitive environment. The yacht that stood out was 73 metre  Grace E, the third vessel in the Vitruvius series designed by Philippe Briand and built by the Perini Navi-owned company Picchiotti.

The judges were particularly impressed by the purposeful good looks of her attractively clean, modern exterior lines, but they also admired her interior layout, her calm yet detailed decorative scheme from the celebrated French designer Rémi Tessier, and the high quality of construction achieved by Perini Navi. Not least, the judges also noted that her miserly fuel consumption, long range and economy of operation made her a vessel that is ideally suited to the modern era.

Builder: Picchiotti – Perini Navi Group
Naval Architect: Philippe Briand/ Vitruvius
Exterior Design: Philippe Briand/Vitruvius
Interior Design: Rémi Tessier

Five yachts competed for the Neptune in this competitive class with two being singled out during the judges’ round-table discussions prior to the completion of the ballot sheets. When the mathematics were completed the narrow margin of the result became apparent: 51.1 metre MySky from Heesen Yachts had been chosen as the winner.

The judges had particularly noted the comments of the owner – a three-time Heesen client – who explained how his philosophy and use of the yacht had influenced its style and layout. The yacht also introduced the work of interior designer Erick van Egeraat whose interior was greatly admired, as was the quality of all aspects of the yacht’s construction and performance, including the stated range of 5,400 nautical miles at a cruise of 10 knots.

Builder: Heesen Yachts
Naval Architect: Van Oossanen/Heesen Yachts
Exterior Design: Omega Architects
Interior Design: Erick van Egeraat

Judges' Commendation: Saramour

Just a single, solitary point separated MySky and Saramour in the final standing, so in recognition of this, the judges agreed to present her with a Commendation.

Following the screening of pictures of all the yachts in this class the judges entered a lively debate on the merits and otherwise of each of the five finalists. But it was the result of the secret ballot that determined the winner and this showed a clear preference for 46.7 metre Elena, which covered the widest range of judging parameters.

This yacht, the judges felt, provided well balanced and extremely pleasant living areas, both on deck and inside, for the owner and his guests while the crew, for whom good living and service facilities ensure the proper running of a modern yacht, was equally well provided for. Particularly admired were the fully featured sundeck and the spacious master suite.

Builder: Heesen Yachts
Naval Architect: Heesen Yachts
Exterior Design: Omega Architects/Heesen Yachts
Interior Design: Omega Architects

Judges' Commendation: Logica

While Elena was the best all-rounder, the highest-scoring yacht for her exterior design was Logica, which receives a Judges’ Commendation.

This class, made up of large, fast semi-displacement yachts, was contested by five famous, well respected yards known for their semi-custom, series-production designs. While each yacht displayed a selection of excellent features and facilities, an overwhelming proportion of the jury homed in on 49 metre  Polaris, the second vessel in the new and exciting Prince Shark 49 design for Rossinavi by Enrico Gobbi’s talented Team for Design.

With her gross tonnage optimised at just below 500GT this militarily styled yacht delivers a top speed of 24 knots despite the nine tonnes of marble that adorn her, while she can cross oceans at 9.5 knots with her 3,800 nautical mile range at this speed. The judges were particularly impressed by her spacious, fully featured deck areas and a well laid out interior that meets all the needs of the owner and his guests as well as the comfort and working requirements of the crew.

Builder: Rossinavi
Naval Architect: Arrabito Naval Architects
Exterior Design:  Team for Design – Enrico Gobbi
Interior Design:  Team For Design - Enrico Gobbi

It was clear from the round-table discussion that every yacht in this class had its particular admirers among the jury, but following the secret ballot it was 47.6 metre Wisp that topped the points, closely followed by Elfje, another modern classic from the same stable of Royal Huisman and Hoek Design. The jury considered the sloop-rigged Wisp to be the epitome of the modern classic sailing yacht, with gorgeous lines, a beautiful exterior enhanced by perfectly proportioned deckhouses and an interior to match from the UK designer Rhoades Young.

In the judges’ view this yacht perfectly fitted the owner’s requirement for a world-cruising yacht that would be his family’s “home away from home with a decent turn of speed without sailing on the edge”, while being capable of some “gentleman’s Corinthian racing”, her ability at which was demonstrated with a podium finish in this year’s  Loro Piana Caribbean Superyacht Regatta & Rendezvous.

Builder: Royal Huisman
Naval Architect:  Hoek Design Naval Architects
Exterior Design:  Hoek Design Naval Architects
Interior Design: Rhoades Young Design

Tied for first place in the Refitted Yacht award category, 37.9 metre  Alumercia, a 14-year-old Heesen expedition yacht, had, in the judges’ opinion, been transformed into an attractively decorated young person’s Mediterranean family cruiser, with disco sound and light on three decks, and a very practical dual purpose beach area/garage in the stern – all in three months.

Original Builder: Heesen Yachts
Refit Yard: Borancili Marine/Istanbul Tuzla Shipyards Area
Naval Architect: Vripack
Exterior Design: Vripack
Interior Design: B.M.L

This year saw two entries to the Voyager’s Award. One was a lengthy action-packed cruise on a roundabout route from New Zealand to New Orleans by the sport fisherman Mea Culpa, sailing via French Polynesia, Hawaii and Alaska. In most years this would have been enough to secure the trophy, but not this year, as the cruise from the second entry, the converted tug Arctic P, was as daring as it was adventurous.

Having visited the Antarctic Peninsula the previous year, the owners of Arctic P yearned to go back for an even more audacious cruise. Headed for the inhospitable Ross Sea, they first called in on Macquarie Island, and the Balleny Islands, where they crossed into the Antarctic Circle.

Their course, often in extremely rough seas, took them onwards to Victoria Land on the Antarctic mainland, skirting the ice-covered shore southwards to Ross Island. Here they visited Scott’s base for his tragic polar expedition and Shackleton’s Hut, preserved as a monument to this intrepid Antarctic explorer, before going on to the USA’s vast McMurdo Research Station. Thereafter, they skirted the 400-mile long, 50 metre-high Ross Ice Shelf heading eastwards and further south towards Roosevelt Island.

The highlight of their voyage came at this point when they took Arctic P to the most southerly location reached by any vessel, be it commercial, military or a yacht – a remarkable achievement now logged in Guinness World Records. On the voyage they observed the Antarctic sea life, both above and below the surface, and they were educated in the local history and biology by embarked lecturers. This was not a spur-of-the-moment cruise, but an immaculately planned expedition in every respect, equipped with all the gear possible, and safety and exit plans to cover every contingency.

This incredible record-breaking voyage is a most worthy winner of this year’s Voyager’s Award.

Builder: Schichau Unterwesser, 1969
Interior Design: Owner’s family
Fuel Capacity: 1.4 million litres
Range: 17,000 miles