BEATRICE, A HISTORIC BOAT DONATED TO THE MUNICIPALITY OF IMPERIA 
Beatrice, a wooden boat of historic value, has been donated to the Municipality of Imperia. The official ceremony took place on Thursday 15 July 2021 at the Ligurian city's Naval Museum, followed by the flag-raising ceremony at the Lungomare Marinai d'Italia-Molo San Lazzaro in the presence of the city authorities and Diana Bracco, Chairman of the Bracco Group, the last owner of the boat. Beatrice, 15.56 metres long and 3.78 metres wide, was launched in 1963 by the Sangermani shipyard in Lavagna, one of the most important and famous international shipyards specialising in the construction of wooden hulls, which also designed her. Built in mahogany planking on iroko frames and with a teak deck, she has a Marconi yawl rig with two masts in Silver Spruce, the main and mizzenmast. During the ceremony the volume "Beatrice. L'importante è andare per mare" (Beatrice. The important thing is to go to sea), written by Fabio Pozzo and enriched by Carlo Borlenghi's pictures. The book also contains copies of the original drawings, the over fifty-year history of the boat, and the testimonies of those who lived on board and brought her back to life. 

The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails

CLAUDIO SCAJOLA: "SAVED THANKS TO THE WORK OF THE STUDENTS".
Claudio Scajola, Mayor of Imperia, thanked President Diana Bracco for this important gift, a sign of her sincere bond with the territory, and expressed the Municipal Administration's enthusiasm for this meritorious initiative. Mr Scajola declared: "I welcome with great pleasure and sincere emotion this initiative linked to the sea and to vintage boating, two elements that have always held a special place in the hearts of the people of Imperia. I am delighted that our city's harbour quay will be able to host this splendid wood, reborn thanks to the careful work of the young and talented students of Imperia's Nautical School". "The presence of Beatrice and, a little further away, the Naval Museum," he added, "allows us to face the challenges of tomorrow with the awareness of being able to enhance everything beautiful and important that has been done in the past". He then renewed his invitation to take part in the next twenty-second edition of "Le Vele d'Epoca di Imperia", the most historic of Italian vintage sail rallies, which started in 1986. After the introduction in 1992 of the biennial cadence, since 2019 the event has returned to being an annual appointment, despite being cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. 

ALMOST 60 YEARS OF HISTORY
In the almost 60 years of its life Beatrice has had four owners. Her first owners were the Venetian industrialists Antonietta Tiozzo and Giovanni Stefani, husband and wife, who launched this First Class RORC on 14 August 1963 under the name Huna. In 1981 the boat was sold to Mario Rondolino, an entrepreneur from Piedmont in the IT sector, and his sister-in-law Jacqueline Ferey, who renamed her Beatrice. In 1999, following Mario's death the previous year, the yawl passed into the hands of his brother Giorgio Rondolino and a few months later was sold to industrialist Roberto De Silva, wife of Diana Bracco. Beatrice thus enjoyed a new lease of life, and from Marina degli Aregai, the small port of Santo Stefano al Mare where she was based, she set off for sailing trips and competitions such as her participation in 2000 and 2002 in "Le Vele d'Epoca di Imperia", one of the stages of the Prada Challenge for Classic Yachts, before the circuit took on the name Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge in 2005. At the helm of Beatrice is Dani De Grassi, a talented and experienced sailor from Trieste who grew up in the bora winds of the upper Adriatic. 

The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails
The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails
The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails
The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails
The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails
The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails
The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails
The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails
The historic boat Beatrice, donated by Diana Bracco to the Municipality of Imperia, becomes an ambassador for the Italian capital of vintage sails

LA RINASCITA 
Nel 2010 Beatrice torna sugli scali di Sangermani per un importante restauro, ma nel 2012, alla scomparsa di Roberto De Silva, la barca rimane inutilizzata. Nel 2016 Giancarlo Gaudino, comandante di Beatrice, suggerisce a Diana Bracco di donarla a Imperia. Viene contattato il professore Luca Bonjean, docente del “Nautico”, che sposa e promuove l’iniziativa. Beatrice lascia Lavagna e presso l’Imperia Yacht Service inizia un’operazione di refitting che coinvolge i ragazzi dell’Istituto Nautico, i loro familiari e l’intera città, diventando anche una questione di cuore. Volontari di ogni titolo e d’ogni esperienza, giovani, meno giovani, papà, mamme, perfino nonne, contribuiscono alla rinascita di Beatrice, che ora è pronta a riprendere il mare. Racconta Diana Bracco: “Quando mi chiesero cosa fare della barca, di cui mio marito Roberto apprezzava le linee e il modo in cui teneva il mare, accolsi con entusiasmo la proposta di donare il Beatrice al Comune di Imperia perché l’Istituto Nautico potesse utilizzarlo come nave-scuola, per le esercitazioni pratiche dei ragazzi dopo averlo restaurato. Mi piaceva l’idea di dare al Beatrice questa seconda vita all’insegna della didattica e dei bei progetti di scuola-lavoro, a cui credo molto”.
DIANA BRACCO, LA PASSIONE PER LE BARCHE D’EPOCA
Diana Bracco De Silva, Cavaliere del Lavoro, è presidente e amministratore delegato dell’omonimo gruppo farmaceutico, diventato leader globale nel settore dell’imaging diagnostico. La Dottoressa Bracco non è nuova a iniziative riguardanti le barche d’epoca. A metà degli anni Novanta la Diana De Silva Cosmetiques, attraverso il marchio Breeze, sostenne infatti il restauro e la partecipazione a importanti competizioni di due storiche imbarcazioni, il 6 m Stazza Internazionale “Dan” del 1931, un ex classe olimpica appartenuta al Re di Danimarca, e il 5.50 m Stazza Internazionale “Dalgra III” del 1957, vincitrice nel 1958 della Coppa d’Italia, che successivamente venne anche timonata dall’eroe della vela italiana Agostino Straulino. Entrambe le barche, a metà degli anni Novanta, hanno regatato in occasione di passate edizioni dei raduni Vele d’Epoca di Imperia. Dopo un quarto di secolo, la donazione di Beatrice si ricollega idealmente a quanto già realizzato all’epoca dalla coppia di imprenditori.