Rolex Middle Sea Race

Date: 17 October 2026

Location: Royal Malta Yacht Club, Valletta, Malta

Organizer: Royal Malta Yacht Club

First sailed in 1968, the Rolex Middle Sea Race is the Royal Malta Yacht Club's 606-nautical-mile offshore classic, regularly named alongside the Rolex Fastnet and the Sydney Hobart as one of the races an offshore sailor should do once. From the start in Valletta's Grand Harbour the fleet circumnavigates Sicily anticlockwise, taking in the Strait of Messina, Stromboli, the Egadi Islands, Pantelleria and Lampedusa before returning to Malta. The scenery is absurd for a yacht race, volcanoes included, but the racing is serious. October weather in the central Mediterranean can shut the fleet down in a calm or break gear in a gale, sometimes both in one edition. The fleet races under IRC and draws everything from grand prix maxis to family-crewed cruisers. The 47th edition starts from Valletta on 17 October 2026.

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