Corum Rubis and Corum Saphir

This post features a classic photo of the French yacht Corum Rubis, which was the Two Ton yacht of the French team which won the 1991 Admiral's Cup. Corum Rubis is seen here racing in the 1991 Two Ton Cup in boisterous conditions in Kiel. Corum was a principal sponsor of the French team for the 1991 and 1993 Admiral's Cup, and all three team yachts (which included the 50 footer Corum Saphir and the smaller One Tonner Corum Diamante) were turned out in immaculate matching livery, and this was complemented by highly cohesive team work. 

Patchy boatspeed was offset by excellent navigation, and in the light airs Fastnet race finale the French Corum team mounted one of the best ambushes ever seen in offshore sailing, coming from fourth  to take overall victory by just 0.62 of a point from the Italian team. To add to the spoils, Corum Saphir rounded out as top yacht of the series.

Corum Saphir approaches a top mark during the 1993 Admiral's Cup

Above and below: Corum Saphir during the 1993 series (photos by shockwave40 blog)

The team sought to defend their victory in the 1993 edition, but were not as successful and finished in third place overall.