Sailing on the lake

In the past, the first forms of tourism expressed the desire for rest, physical well-being and the desire to enjoy the climate and the healthiness of the air, and it was here that the fraglia was born. In 1928 in Riva del Garda the Fraglia established an autonomous section, committing itself through the statute to developing the art of sailing, encouraging sporting competition through races.

In June 1934, the first club as a sports club was born in Riva del Garda, the year in which the adjacent Spiaggia degli Ulivi was inaugurated, which transformed the city of Riva del Garda from a health resort to a charming Italian resort with a Mediterranean flavour. The first edition of the International Sailing Week was held in 1951: the Intervela, which celebrated its sixtieth edition in 2010. In the winter of 1948, a group of young sailing enthusiasts from Verona founded the then “Fraglia della Vela di Torri”, the second club on the lake after the Fraglia vela of Riva del Garda. It officially entered the Italian Sailing Federation with the first “International Tonnage” regatta organized in 1949. Since 1950 Gargnano has been one of the most active sailing clubs on the Italian and international sporting scene.

In addition to the events proposed by the local calendar, there are national, European or world championships in various categories, and in 1996 the Homerus project (autonomous sailing for the blind) was born, consecrated with the victory in the World Championship in 2003.

It was April 20, 1958 when a group of sailors from Desenzano gave life to the “Fraglia Desenzanese della Vela e del Motore” and renamed it “Fraglia vela Desenzano”. The history of Fraglia is the history of its city, of its people who find opportunities for fun on the waters of the largest Italian lake.