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Le Havre (Municipality, Seine-Maritime, France): Yacht clubs

Société des Régates du Havre
Sport Nautique du Havre
Club Nautique Havrais

See also:

Société des Régates du Havre

by Ivan Sache

Société des Régates du Havre (SRH) was founded in 1838; it is the oldest French yacht club still active. In the second half of the XIXth century, SRH organized famous regattas in Sainte-Adresse, where a Regatta Palace was built. SRH has still a big club house in Sainte-Adresse. A more recent club house was built in the marina of Le Havre, on the Eric Tabarly quay.

The flag of SRH is vertically divided blue-red with a white diamond in the middle, reaching the upper and lower borders of the flag. A black fouled anchor is placed in the middle of the diamond, flanked by the yellow letters R and H.

by Ivan Sache

The burgee of SRH is a triangular version of the flag

Source: SRH website and local observations.

by Ivan Sache

The list of the clubs affiliated to Yacht Club de France shows the burgee of SRH with the letter RH in blue instead of yellow.

Ivan Sache, 25 December 2003

Sport Nautique du Havre

by Ivan Sache

Sport Nautique du Havre (SNH) was founded in the XIXth century by M. More. In 1914, SNH had 80 members. Yachting activity resumed in 1922, and ceased again during the Second World War. In 1946, a provisory club house was built on the blockhaus which had replaced the pre-war club house. In 1952, the blockhaus was destroyed. Société des Petites Régates du Havre, founded in 1866 by M. Lecomte, which had not resumed any activity after the Second World War, accepted to merge with SNH.

On 27 March 1955, the new club house, granted by the Port Authority, was inaugurated. In 1964, Eric Tabarly, winner of the Atlantic Race, was awarded an honourary membership by SNH.

The club house of SNH is located in the marina of Le Havre, on the Eric Tabarly quay, just beside the SRH club house.

The flag of SNH is divided by a white saltire; the upper and right quarters are red, whereas the lower and left quarters are blue. In the middle of the flag, a white diamond is charged with a black anchor. This anchor is shown in gold on the SNH logotype, but is black on the real flag hoisted over the SNH club house.

by Ivan Sache

The burgee of SNH is a triangular version of the flag.

Source: SNH website and local observations.

Ivan Sache, 18 October 2003

Club Nautique Havrais

by Ivan Sache

Club Nautique Havrais (CNH) was founded in 1932 by the merging of Union Fédérale de Normandie and Association Sportive Augustin Normand. The new club was nicknamed 'the blue and reds' and membership was 600 on its first year of existence. The club used a floating barge moored in the Commerce Basin as its club house until 1939. The club house was destroyed during the 1944 bombings but the activity of CNH did not cease. Membership was 2,500 in 1946.

CNH is not strictly a yacht club but a swimming club. It has swimming, water-polo, dive (1947), and synchronized swimming (1947) sections. These are the four sections recognized by the French Swimming Federation, and CNH was one of the first French clubs to have these four sections.

In 1958, swimming in the Commerce Basin was forbidden because of the risk of pollution. CNH decided to build its own swimming pool on the promenade, which was inaugurated in 1964. In May 1969, an official 50-m basin was inaugurated. Since then, the four sections of CNH have flourished and produced several champions of regional, national and international level.

The burgee of CNH, seen on a sticker on the front door of the swimming pool, is vertically divided blue-red. The white letters CNH are placed on the flag in a fairly elegant pattern.

Source: CNH website and local obervations

Ivan Sache, 18 October 2003