Alandia Match Race
Grade One Match Race
August 6-10, 1997

Mariehamn Harbor, Åland Island, Finland Peter Holmberg out-sailed Denmark's Sten Mohr in two straight to win the finals of the Alandia Match Race, a contest that attracted 12 top-ranked international match racing skippers to the Baltic Sea venue set between Sweden and Finland.

When the wind shut down on the final day, forcing officials to forego a best-of-five finals series, Holmberg was declared the winner. "Considering we had no practice before the event, Swedish trimmer Mikael Bjormdahl and bowman Magnus Gravare did a great job coming together as a team," said Holmberg. "It is fantastic to win two Grade One events in a row."

In the Petit Finals to determine 3rd and 4th, Croatia's Tomislav Basic upset France's No. 14-ranked Luc Pillot in two straight.

Long Island Sound IMS Championship
Grand Prix Racing Regatta
Sept. 6 -7, 1997
Stamford, CT

Peter Holmberg helmed Tom Stark of Riverside Connecticut's Corel 45 Rush to a Division I first place trophy with a 1-5-2 record in the 9th annual Long Island Sound IMS Championship Regatta.

Raced by an 11-man crew, which included John Cutler as tactician, Rush out-sailed eight of the region's best boats, including the title defender Farr 47 Blue Yankee, Farr 40 Illusion (2nd) and the Corel 45 Heat Wave (3rd).

CIGNA Knickerbocker Cup
Grade One Match Race
Sept. 10 -14, 1997
New York Harbor, NY

Teamed with tactician John Cutler, Peter Holmberg and Team Caribbean finished 2nd in this star-studded field sailed in the New York Harbor. In placing 2nd, Team Caribbean beat No. 2 world-ranked Peter Gilmour, the current World Champion, No. 4-ranked Bertrand Pacé, and America True skipper Dawn Riley.

Hosted by the Knickerbocker YC, the East Coast's premier match race event drew 16 world-class skippers from 9 countries, including five America's Cup syndicates: Marc Pajot (Switzerland's FAST 2000); Murray Jones (Team New Zealand); Peter Gilmour (Nippon Challenge); Dawn Riley (America True) and Peter Holmberg (Team Caribbean).

"It was a good series for us, even though we finished second," noted Holmberg, who survived a flutter of penalties, collisions, a close encounter with a cruise ship, and a Presidential visit that shut down traffic in New York Harbor.  "The conditions were extreme, but Cutler, Steve Gruver (trimmer) and Cameron Dunn (main) did a great job of mastering the tricky currents and fickle winds; not our usual Virgin Islands conditions."

Gilmour finished 3rd, Pacé 4th; Tomislav Basic of Croatia was 5th; New Zealander Murray Jones 6th; America ³ Cup-winning helmsman David Dellenbaugh 7th; and Sebastien Destramau of France 8th.

Bermuda Gold Cup
(Oct. 5 - 12)
Hamilton Harbour, Bermuda

With a brilliant display of sailing skills and expert boat handling, Australian Peter Gilmour and his Japanese crewmen beat defending champion Russell Coutts to capture the King Edward VII trophy in the Bermuda Gold Cup by the score of 3-0.

Gilmour's victory dethroned Coutts, not only from his status as reigning Gold Cup champ, but also from the number one ranking on the Omega World Match Race Rankings List. Gilmour is also the current World Champion of Match Race Sailing by virtue of his July victory in Sweden.

Peter Holmberg of the U.S. Virgin Islands won the petit-final 2-0 to take third place over New Zealander Murray Jones. In both races, Holmberg started even with Jones, but managed to convert superior boat speed and handling of wind shifts into winning runs to the finish.

Manning the 30-foot IODs (International One Designs) for Team Caribbean were Holmberg (helmsman), John Cutler (bowman), Steve Gruver (trimmer) and Dennis Correia (main).

First held in 1937, the Gold Cup is the world's oldest match racing tournament held in one-design yachts. A Grade One event  hosted by the Royal Bermuda yacht Club, it has long been rated at the top of the professional tour, both for its venue, and its competitiveness.

Final Results:

1.Peter Gilmour (AUS)
2.Russell Coutts (NZL)
3.Peter Holmberg (USVI)
4.Murray Jones (NZL)
5.Magnus Holmberg (SWE)
6.Ed Baird (USA)
7.Gavin Brady (NZL)
8.Peter Bromby (BER)

BEYC Pro-Am Regatta
Nov. 5-7, 1997
Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands

Peter Holmberg sailed away in light-to-moderate winds in Gorda Sound to a first place finish in the 11th Annual Bitter End Yacht Club Invitational Pro-Am Regatta, beating America's Cup veteran skipper Harold Cudmore 3-1 in the final match race series. Peter Isler, America's Cup-winning navigator for Dennis Conner, captured third with a 2-1 win over Olympic gold medalist Mark Reynolds.

Competing in Freedom 30s and Colgate 26s from the Bitter End Yacht Club fleet in a single round-robin, semi-final and final format over a three-day period, this year's skipper roster boasted top sailing talent from past America's Cups, Admiral's Cups, and BEYC Pro-Am Regattas, including Russell Coutts (Olympic gold medalist and winning helmsman for the last America's Cup), ‘J.J.' Isler (America's Cup veteran with the women's team in 1995), Paula Lewin (recent winner of the Women's Match Racing World Championships), and Ken Read (five-time J/24 World Champion and 1997 Admiral's Cup-winning skipper on Team USA's IMS entry Flash Gordon 3).

A Grade Two match race, BEYC Pro-Am Regatta holds the distinction of being the only sailing event in the world where hotel resort guests can crew with sailing ‘super-stars' from the America's Cup and Olympic competitions. Each skipper is allowed to bring a single crew member and the Bitter End fills the remaining three slots with its guests.