Long Beach, CA (31 March 2026) French skipper Aurélien Pierroz has been added to the 2026 Congressional Cup roster, stepping in for nine-time Match Racing World Champion Ian Williams.
Currently ranked fifth in the world by World Sailing, Pierroz sits just behind fellow Frenchman and Congressional Cup invitee Ian Garreta. He is a two-time French Youth Match Racing Champion (2021, 2022) and claimed the Open French Match Racing Championship title in 2023. Among his standout achievements is a third-place finish at the WMRT Final in Shenzhen, the 2025 championship event of the World Match Racing Tour.
This will mark Pierroz’s first appearance at the Congressional Cup. However, he is no stranger to Long Beach, the venue, or the Congressional Cup’s iconic Catalina 37 fleet. He enters the event as a serious contender, having finished fourth at last year’s Ficker Cup and sixth in 2024.
Racing runs April 29 – May 3, 2026. The event is immediately preceded by the Ficker Cup Grade 2 April 24 – 26. The top two finishers of the Ficker Cup will round out the Congressional Cup field.
For more information on Congressional Cup visit www.thecongressionalcup.com; and www.wmrt.com for details on the World Match Racing Tour.
2026 Congressional Cup Skippers
1. Chris Poole, Riptide Racing, USA (World ranking #1)
2. Cole Tapper, Kairos Racing, AUS (World ranking #2)
3. Johnie Berntsson, Berntsson Sailing Team, SWE (World ranking #3)
4. Ian Garreta, Med Racing, FRA (World ranking #4)
5. Aurélien Pierroz, Match Again by NET, FRA (World ranking #5)
6. Eric Monnin, Capvis Swiss Match Racing, SUI (World ranking #7)
7. Christian Prendergast, A Team, USA (World ranking #10)
8. Jeppe Borch, Borch Match Race Team, DEN (World ranking #13)
9. Ficker Cup 1st Place TBC
10. Ficker Cup 2nd Place TBC
World Sailing rankings as of 1 March 2026
CONTACT
LBYC Race Office
Cameron MacLaren: raceoffice@lbyc.org
Instagram: @lbycconcup
Facebook: @congressionalcup
World Match Racing Tour:
Contact: media@wmrt.com
Instagram: @worldmatchracingtour
Linked In: World Match Racing Tour
Facebook: @worldmatchracingtour
ABOUT LONG BEACH YACHT CLUB
Established in 1929, Long Beach Yacht Club is recognized as a leading organization in the international yachting community for its commitment to excellence in yacht racing and innovation in race management. In addition to hosting the Congressional Cup and numerous other local, national and international yachting events, the Club’s member families enjoy a year-round calendar of social, yachting and junior activities at its beautiful clubhouse on the shore of Alamitos Bay. www.lbyc.org
ABOUT WORLD MATCH RACING TOUR
Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The WMRT is awarded ‘Special Event’ status by the sport’s world governing body –World Sailing – and the winner of the WMRT each year is crowned World Sailing Match Racing World Champion. Since 2000, the World Match Racing Tour and its events have awarded over USD24million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors. www.wmrt.com