Family matters in Rolex China Sea Race 2024

Sailing offshore together allows families a unique bonding experience, conquering mother nature.  The 565nm Rolex China Sea Race, which starts on 27 March on Hong Kong’s iconic Victoria Harbour, takes competitors across the China Sea to Subic Bay in the Philippines. 

For the father-daughter duo, Jiaqi Wu and XiaoTong Wu aboard Chinese entry TongRan, this year’s Rolex China Sea Race will mark their first opportunity to sail in the event as crewmates. TongRan was named after the owner’s daughter XiaoTong and son HaoRan Wu. The acquisition of this cruiser encouraged his daughter to start sailing and this will be her debut offshore race.

Other families competing in this year’s race include three father-son combinations.  Also joining their first Rolex China Sea Race together is father and son duo Bradly and Liam Wilkins on Blowers Daughter.

This is Liam Wilkins’ first offshore race however he has taken part in the coastal series hosted by the RHKYC and proved himself during the February race when conditions were relatively heavier. Sleeping rough on the floor and taking his turn at the helm in the middle of the night he proved his worth and is now looking forward to our first China Sea Race.

Both farther and son will be celebrating their birthdays on 27 March the start of the Rolex China Sea Race.

Father-son duo Phillipe and Cosmos Grelon are participating in their third double handed race together in a Rolex China Sea Race. Their Beneteau Figaro 3 A Plastic Ocean, a high-performance sailing yacht was specifically designed for short-handed offshore racing. Their previous foray into the world of double handed racing saw this dynamic duo compete in the 2023 edition, taking IRC 2nd Place Overall and will be one to watch for the overall race.

Another father-son pair to feature in this year’s race is that of Teodorico and Richard Asejo. Father Teodorico represented the Philippines at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, crewing a Soling. His extensive racing experience includes having crossed the China Sea 47 times and participating in 15 China Sea Race. 2024 will be Richard’s second China Sea Race sailing together with his legendary sailor father onboard Standard Insurance Centennial III.

Aboard of Seawolf, is navigator Jeremy Koo, a celebrated Malaysian sailor who won gold medal at the 2001 Asian Sailing Championship in Pusan, Korea. Koo will be sailing together with his sister Tiffany Koo, as the team vie for an IRC Overall win this year.

Emerson Villena, skipper of Standard Insurance Centennial III a Gold medallist in the 470 Class at Southeast Asian Games 2019, will be joined by his brother Erickson Villena, another Philippines sailing team member, to push the boat hard, aiming for a Line Honours victory this year.

Rolex China Sea Race 2024, which takes competitors from Hong Kong, China across the China Sea to Subic Bay in the Philippines will start on 27 March.