On Saturday, May 16, 2009, more than 500 guests, including preeminent members of the superyacht industry and 150 superyacht owners and friends, gathered at London’s Guildhall to enjoy a magnificent gala dinner, award ceremony and after party.
Now in its fourth year, the Boat International Media World Superyacht Awards continues to celebrate excellence in superyacht build and design, recognizing the dedication and passion of owners and the talents of the industry’s builders, naval architects and designers.
An independent panel of judges comprising 13 superyacht owners and two respected industry professionals gave their time and knowledge to determine the best built yachts of 2008. All the judges made extraordinary efforts to visit as many of the contending yachts as possible and with the aid of a 400-page dossier containing a detailed brief on each vessel, they gathered at Maybach’s headquarters in Stuttgart in March 2009 to consider the finalists. Each yacht was awarded marks in six categories and the total of these marks determined the winners.
The winners of both the Sailing Yacht of the Year and Motor Yacht of the Year received both a Neptune and an art piece created especially for the occasion by world famous artist Dale Chihuly. A select number of outstanding finalists received Judges’ Commendations and were invited onto the stage to receive a porcelain piece by Nymphenburg.
Pictures from the event are available on the World Superyacht Award website as well as more information about the event, sponsors and winners. Congratulations to all those who took home a Neptune and congratulations again to all of the finalists: www.worldsuperyachtawards.com/finalists. The superb offerings from all the nominees made the competition very tight this year.
www.WorldSuperyachtAwards.com
Motor Yacht Awards
BEST DISPLACEMENT MOTOR YACHT OF 3,000GT AND ABOVE (APPROX 85M +)
Winner: Al Mirqab
BEST DISPLACEMENT MOTOR YACHT OF 1,300GT TO 2,999GT (APPROX 60M - 84M)
Winner: Siren
BEST DISPLACEMENT MOTOR YACHT OF 500GT TO 1,299GT (APPROX 50M - 59M)
Winner: Vive la Vie
Judges’ Commendation: Sea Force One
BEST DISPLACEMENT MOTOR YACHT OF BELOW 500GT (APPROX 30M - 49M)
Joint Winner: Marama
Joint Winner: Elandess
Judges’ Commendation: Beothuk
Judges’ Commendation: Ingot
BEST SEMI-DISPLACEMENT OR PLANING MOTOR YACHT IN 40M + SIZE RANGE
Winner: Lazy Me
BEST SEMI-DISPLACEMENT OR PLANING MOTOR YACHT IN 30M TO 39M SIZE RANGE
Winner: Onyx
BEST INTERIOR DESIGN – MOTOR YACHT
Winner: Andrew Winch Designs for Al Mirqab
BEST EXTERIOR STYLING – MOTOR YACHT
Winner: Francesco Paszkowski for Onyx
Judges’ Commendation: Tim Heywood Design for Al Mirqab
MOTOR YACHT OF THE YEAR
Winner: Al Mirqab
Sailing Yacht Awards
BEST SAILING YACHT IN 45M + SIZE RANGE
Winner: Saudade
BEST SAILING YACHT IN 30M TO 44M SIZE RANGE
Winner: P2
Judges’ Commendation: Mrs Seven
BEST INTERIOR DESIGN – SAILING YACHT
Winner: Rémi Tessier for Salute
BEST EXTERIOR STYLING – SAILING YACHT
Winner: Briand Yacht Design for P2
SAILING YACHT OF THE YEAR
Winner: P2
General Awards
BEST REFITTED YACHT
Winner: Stampede
Judges’ Commendation: Vajoliroja
BEST NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
Winner: Eidsgaard Design – For the exterior styling and interior design of Saudade
TECHNOLOGY AWARD
Winner: Abeking & Rasmussen – For their SWATH hull design
SUPERYACHT LEGACY AWARD
Andreas Liveras
YOUNG DESIGNER OF THE YEAR
Winner: Maila Speitkamp