CRIOULA

Brazil’s Crioula team put a toe in the water in 2024 competing at two events (Portals and Valencia). Not only did they enjoy their first experiences but they were competitive from the off and scored some good results, finishing fourth overall in Valencia with a 2.2.1 in their scoreline. 
Their boat is the former Provezza IX, a well optimised Vrolijk design which finished second overall in 2023. 

The team is made up of a mix of amateur and professional sailors. For the most part, they are all from the same club—Veleiros do Sul—from the south of the country. They also have two Argentine sailors on board.

The team is led by two brothers, Eduardo and Renato Plass. Eduardo is the boat’s helmsman, and Renato does the backstay.

The team was born in 2010 on the Soto 40 Crioula, where it sailed until 2021. In parallel, the team did long regattas in the Caribbean and Europe aboard a boat built in 2014—Camiranga—a Soto 65 Canting Keel. In 2021, they bought the old TP52 Paprec and took it to Brazil. This year, the idea came up of buying a TP in Europe and participating in a more active calendar in 2025, whether in the 52 SUPER SERIES or even rating regattas.

The team is made up of good sailors, all with a lot of experience. The big secret they have is the teamwork. They are friends and have amateurs who sail very well and who could be professionals. They also seek to prioritize young people in their club and region, to help train better sailors in the future.