Swan 51
Nautor Swan · German Frers · 1981
Updated
The Swan 51 is a 15.56 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by German Frers and built by Nautor Swan, first launched in 1981. It races in Class A.
Length
15.56 m
51′ 1″
Beam
4.45 m
Draft
2.71 m
Displacement
19.1 t
Sail area
133 m²
On the podium
Where a Swan 51 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
15%
of 20 starts by 5 boats
Wins
5%
Read from 20 starts by 5 boats between 2022 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Swan 51 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Rolex Swan Cup2026- Rolex Swan Cup2022
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: 4 races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
19%
of these races end on the podium
Who she races against
The designs a Swan 51 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the Swan 51 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
6.12
38°
Beam reach
9.21
90°
Broad reach
9.76
135°
Downwind VMG
8.70
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.
It is an upwind boat first. Windward-leeward courses give it more of what it is good at than a coastal race does.
Where it gains
Its best ground is to windward in a strong breeze, where it outruns what it looks like on paper, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage on the beam as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short off the wind in a strong breeze, giving away time it never gets back. That is weight that has to be driven rather than released.
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 0.6 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a Swan 51
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.64 | 5.09 | 5.80 | 6.12 |
| 52° | 5.64 | 7.60 | 8.21 | 8.46 |
| 60° | 6.02 | 7.84 | 8.41 | 8.67 |
| 75° | 6.36 | 8.00 | 8.60 | 8.98 |
| 90° | 6.25 | 7.97 | 8.67 | 9.21 |
| 110° | 5.99 | 8.08 | 8.85 | 9.37 |
| 120° | 5.83 | 7.97 | 8.87 | 9.71 |
| 135° | 5.24 | 7.53 | 8.68 | 9.76 |
| 150° | 4.44 | 6.73 | 8.24 | 9.36 |
| Run VMG | 3.84 | 5.83 | 7.32 | 8.70 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 1020 kg.
Rigging
Swan 51 rig and sail dimensions
A Swan 51 carries 19.12 m of mainsail hoist on a 5.60 m boom, a forestay 20.74 m above the deck and a 7.90 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 7 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 202 to 227 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.