Omega’s latest venture is plain sailing

Omega is making waves with a new special edition watch to celebrate its latest sporting partnership.

Alinghi, the competitive Swiss sailing team created by Ernesto Bertarell 16 years ago, won the America’s Cup in 2003 and 2007, making it the first European team to win the historic prize.

As the official timekeeper for the March 2021 America’s Cup – due to take place in Auckland, New Zealand – Omega, which joined forces with Alinghi last year, has unveiled a Speedmaster Dark Side of the Moon.

And if readers think it looks familiar, that’s because it is. The reference is very similar to the 2018 Dark Side of the Moon Apollo 8 edition, featuring the same movement and case.

Special edition

The black, red and white custom edition which is on sale now at around £8,200, features the Alinghi team’s rotating logo on its 44.2mm dial. 

Using red to represent passion and black for technology, the team’s logo is inspired by two boats churning the seas before a match race.

And those enjoying a fast pace of life will love the design of the slim watch, which is incredibly light and water resistant to 50 metres.

Inspirational design

In tribute to the way Alinghi boats fly across the water, the watchmaker’s new model takes ingenious design features from the boat and incorporates them.

With decorated Calibre 1865, revealed through a blackened skeletonised dial, the manual-winding movement has detail replicating Alinghi’s new TF35 catamaran. Both the barrel and mainplate have been laser cut to resemble the carbon hull, while the bridges have all been decorated using a carbon black pattern that is used on the hull.

Created from black zirconium oxide ceramic, even the white accents and red stitching on the black rubber strap match the Alinghi’s livery. The tachymeter scale is in Super-LumiNova and Alinghi logo is on the stop/start pusher, in red varnish.

At 3 o’clock, a 4-minute or 5-minute tactical time display is in red and it’s designed to help with precision on the water, such as allowing the skipper to dial in a starting sequence and hit the start line at the exact moment required, for example.

At 6 o’clock, the traditional subdial design has been replaced with a sandblasted and anodised aluminum disc, which features the Alinghi logo. A nifty cardinal triangle at the top of the disc lets the wearer know how many hours have elapsed since the chronograph was started.

Packed sporting schedule

Omega has a packed schedule of sporting events next year, with the America’s Cup and  Olympic Games taking place consecutively.

Raynald Aeschlimann, Omega’s president, reported to the media that the America’s Cup would mark a triumphant return to international sporting events and that he was thrilled to be reconnecting with partners after the Coronavirus outbreak prevented large gatherings from going ahead.

New and preloved Omega watches

We supply an excellent range of new and pre-worn luxury Omega watches both online and in our Essex boutique. 

Our experienced team will happily assist with any queries you may have, so contact us today.