Sea Cliff Yacht Club, Trustees of the International Catamaran Challenge Trophy (ICCT), and the Southern Yacht Club (New Orleans, LA), the current defender of the trophy, have announced that they are accepting proposals from cities around the world to host the 25th anniversary regatta later this year.

First contested in 1961 and dubbed the Little America’s Cup, the International Catamaran Challenge Trophy resumed competition two years ago under a new format after a seven-year hiatus.

Formerly sailed in one-off C Class catamarans, the event is currently raced in the developmental F18HT high-performance catamaran in an effort to make the competition more affordable and accessible to a wide range of sailors.

Given the interest from top international catamaran teams there is a desire to hold the event in a venue that will enable as many teams to participate as practical, provide media accessibility sought by the teams’ sponsors, and capitalize on venues to optimise spectator viewing. Several venues have already inquired about hosting the silver anniversary event.

Last October John Lovell and Charlie Ogeltree, US Sailing Team Olympic silver medalists in the Tornado class at the Athens Olympic Regatta, successfully defended the trophy they won in 2003 by defeating Enrique Figueroa and Jorge Hernandez of Puerto Rico.

Instead of hosting a second defense, the Southern Yacht Club agreed to the ICCT Trustees’ wishes to open the location of the next event to venues other than just the defender’s home waters.

The Trustees hope to announce a host venue and dates of competition as soon as possible. Interested venues should send proposals to ICCT Trustees, c/o Sea Cliff Yacht Club, 42 The Boulevard, Sea Cliff, NY 11579, USA.