Venturelab Trophy 2022: Entrepreneurs and investors engage in a friendly sailing competition

Entrepreneurship is teamwork and pursuing your goals amidst tough conditions. This mindset drives founders toward success—and there’s no better way to practice these skills than in competitive sailing. It is what has made the Venturelab Trophy a tradition: For the third time, founders and investors met in Barcelona for a friendly sailing competition, followed by pitches and intense networking.

The Venturelab Trophy sailing match was made possible by VISCHER, providing the basecamp for the Swiss National Startup Team at the Royal Club Nautico. Rolf Auf der Maur, a partner at Vischer and host of the Trophy, emphasized: “Preparation goes a long way to get the boat and the crew ready for success. And then there are circumstances that you just have to accept—the wind, the waves, the actions of the competing teams. Deal with them the best way possible.”



To prepare for the race and stay safe, the crews got instructions from sailing pros Rolf auf der Maur and Oscar Chaves Cayuela.



Leaving the harbor, the investors and the members of the Swiss National Startup Team took their positions on the boats, getting ready for the competition.


 
The race took off with ambitious maneuvers from the start.



In an especially fast turn, the Swiss National Startup Team nearly lost a crew member going over board. Acting quickly, the team pulled him out of the water. 



Pushing adrenaline to the limits, the two teams ended up winning one round each, leading to a tie. 
 

10 Venture Leaders, 1 goal – win the Venturelab Trophy! A nice breeze and excellent team work made for a fantastic race, with both teams finishing at a tie victory. A great kick-off for an intense week in Barcelona, showcasing the best of Swiss mobile technology!#VLeadersMobile pic.twitter.com/5clDhtVDU8

— Venturelab (@venturelab_ch) February 27, 2022

Returning to the harbor, everybody was excited about the experience. A networking businesss lunch rewarded the sailors for their efforts. In the afternoon, facing the far horizon of the Mediterranean Sea, the Swiss National Startup Team pitched their solutions and discussed the possibilities of technology innovation and building sustainable businesses with investors and the  partners of the Venturelab Trophy. "The Trophy was a great experience and excellent way to meet with the Swiss startup team," shared Isaac de la Peña, General Partners at Conexo Ventures, "shared action at, pitching and networking in a great atmosphere, all ingredients to make the event quite unique and build great contacts."

The 2022 Venturelab Trophy was supported by VISCHER; the Venture Leaders Mobile program is sponsored by Huawei, Swisscom, and VISCHER. For more information and updates on the Venture Leaders Mobile, follow the Venture Leaders Mobile 2022 team with #VleadersMobile on social media.