Cowes-Torquay - 29 July 2010 -- Hannes Bohinc, the Austrian world powerboat champion, will aim to become only the fourth man in history to win the Cowes Torquay Cowes three times when his Wettpunkt.com team lines up for one of the world’s great endurance challenges over the August Bank Holiday weekend.

Bohinc will compete alongside fellow Austrian Max Holzfeind and distinguished English navigator Ed Williams-Hawkes in two races at the 2010 British Powerboat Festival as the experienced crew attempt to secure the coveted Harmsworth Trophy.

The solid bronze sculpture, powerboating’s equivalent of the America’s Cup, was commissioned in 1903 by Sir Alfred Harmsworth, then proprietor of the Daily Mail. It remains highly prized by powerboating’s elite endurance racers.

“Cowes is the home of powerboating and I always feel privileged to race there,” said Bohinc, team owner and throttleman, Wettpunkt.com. “The Harmsworth Trophy will add to the occasion and increase the competitive edge of this very special event.”

Bohinc will compete in Wettpunkt.com, an FB RIB 39, powered by twin FPT 560hp diesel engines. Though not the fastest boat in the British-dominated field, it is in the hands of one of the world’s most formidable crews and, in the notoriously difficult waters off the South Coast, outright speed is often less important than reliability and good seamanship.

The first race of the 2010 British Powerboat Festival, the Cowes 100, takes place on Friday 27 August with the 50th running of the Cowes Torquay Cowes scheduled to start at 10am on Sunday 29th.