Grand Soleil 65
Cantiere del Pardo · Matteo Polli · 2020
Updated
The Grand Soleil 65 is a 20.10 m semi-displacement racing yacht designed by Matteo Polli and built by Cantiere del Pardo, first launched in 2020. It races in Maxi.
Length
20.10 m
65′ 11″
Beam
5.95 m
Draft
3.75 m
Displacement
26.0 t
Sail area
249 m²
On the podium
Where a Grand Soleil 65 finishes when she goes racing.
0
Wins
0
Seconds
1
Thirds
1
Starts
Not enough races yet for a percentage — these are the counts so far. We keep collecting results, so this will fill in.
Read from 1 start by 1 boat between 2025, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Grand Soleil 65 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Coppa Regina dei Paesi Bassi2025
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound the buoys, or offshore
A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.
Round the buoys
—
Not enough data yet: no races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
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Not enough data yet: 1 race over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Grand Soleil 65 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Met too few times for a figure:
J/122 (1 meeting), Swan 45 (1 meeting), Bolt 37 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 44 (Polli) (1 meeting), Solaris 55 (1 meeting), First 45 (Briand) (2 meetings), X-35 (1 meeting), Farr 30 (1 meeting), Comet 41 (1 meeting), Elan 310 (1 meeting), Sun Odyssey 45.2 (1 meeting), M 34 (1 meeting), Comet 45 (1 meeting), Figaro 1 (1 meeting), M 37 (1 meeting), Bonin 31 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 40 (Paperini) (2 meetings), Pogo 50 (1 meeting), Sun Fast 3600 (1 meeting), Este 39 (1 meeting)
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
7.13
39°
Beam reach
11.73
90°
Broad reach
13.46
135°
Downwind VMG
10.45
170°
Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.
Where it wins and where it pays
Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.
Soft conditions suit it. Early-season racing and morning breezes play to its strengths; once it pipes up the fleet comes back to it.
Where it gains
Its best ground is to windward when it blows, where it goes better than its measurements say it should, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short on the run in a strong breeze, giving away time it never gets back. That is a hull that will lift and run given enough breeze.
Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.
Full width is 0.8 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a Grand Soleil 65
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 4.51 | 6.26 | 6.82 | 7.13 |
| 52° | 6.96 | 9.22 | 9.86 | 10.18 |
| 60° | 7.39 | 9.60 | 10.20 | 10.54 |
| 75° | 7.73 | 9.89 | 10.63 | 11.13 |
| 90° | 7.76 | 9.90 | 10.82 | 11.73 |
| 110° | 7.62 | 10.16 | 11.20 | 12.20 |
| 120° | 7.36 | 10.07 | 11.44 | 12.89 |
| 135° | 6.58 | 9.51 | 11.00 | 13.46 |
| 150° | 5.48 | 8.27 | 10.14 | 12.06 |
| Run VMG | 4.75 | 7.16 | 8.83 | 10.45 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. A bowsprit is standard across the fleet. Crew weight is declared around 750 kg.
Rigging
Grand Soleil 65 rig and sail dimensions
A Grand Soleil 65 carries 26.85 m of mainsail hoist on a 9.28 m boom, a forestay 26.70 m above the deck and a 10.06 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 2 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 309 to 408 m² depending on bowsprit and set-up. Before ordering a sail, read the figure on your own measurement record rather than the typical one for the design.