Italia 9.98
Italia Yachts · Matteo Polli · 2014
Updated
- ORC World Championship · Class C2015 · 2016
Each title was won by a boat of this design, not by the design itself.
The Italia 9.98 is a 10.30 m displacement racing yacht designed by Matteo Polli and built by Italia Yachts, first launched in 2014. It races in Class C. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 90% of the designs it races against.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 90% of the boats it races against.
17th of 159 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 479 starts across 71 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
10.30 m
33′ 10″
Beam
3.54 m
Draft
1.91 m
Displacement
4.6 t
Sail area
69 m²
On the podium
Where a Italia 9.98 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
38%
of 479 starts by 21 boats
Wins
14%
Read from 479 starts by 21 boats between 2016 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Italia 9.98 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
"Αγκιστρι 2026"2026- "Πανελληνιο Κυπελο ORCI 2026"2026
Klaipėda ORC European Championship2026
Edison Next Italian Offshore Sailing Championship - Campionato Italiano Assoluto d’Altura2026
Baltic Offshore Week 2026 - ORC A & B EST and FIN Championship2026
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
37%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
31%
of these races end on the podium
Sharper round the buoys. Short courses reward acceleration and manoeuvring, and that is where this design makes its money.
Who she races against
The designs a Italia 9.98 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the Italia 9.98 has fared against each of them, boat against boat on corrected time. Ordered by how often the two meet, not by who wins.
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
5.10
40°
Beam reach
8.48
90°
Broad reach
10.14
135°
Downwind VMG
7.87
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.
Reaching and running is where this one pays. A course with long free legs suits it better than a windward-leeward.
Where it gains
Its best ground is on a broad reach once it pipes up, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage on the run as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short on the beat in a strong breeze, giving away time it never gets back. That is a displacement hull working to its designed speed.
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 broad reach.
How fast is a Italia 9.98
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.42 | 4.67 | 5.04 | 5.10 |
| 52° | 5.25 | 6.79 | 7.21 | 7.34 |
| 60° | 5.55 | 6.98 | 7.44 | 7.62 |
| 75° | 5.75 | 7.15 | 7.71 | 8.07 |
| 90° | 5.84 | 7.33 | 7.84 | 8.48 |
| 110° | 5.99 | 7.60 | 8.36 | 9.16 |
| 120° | 5.87 | 7.54 | 8.50 | 9.66 |
| 135° | 5.24 | 7.22 | 8.23 | 10.14 |
| 150° | 4.42 | 6.52 | 7.63 | 9.00 |
| Run VMG | 3.83 | 5.65 | 6.74 | 7.87 |
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 620 kg.
Rigging
Italia 9.98 rig and sail dimensions
A Italia 9.98 carries 13.04 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.79 m boom, a forestay 13.72 m above the deck and a 5.50 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 26 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 73 to 127 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.