TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph Skipper

Following a welcome return to the world of yachting with last year’s release of the Carrera Skipper chronograph in steel, TAG Heuer is delighted to announce a new version of the watch featuring a case made from 18K 5N rose gold.

Like the steel model, the gold Skipper is based on the best-selling ‘glassbox’ design launched in early 2023 to mark the 60th anniversary of the celebrated Carrera chronograph and is powered by the Heuer 02 (Ref. TH20-06) in-house calibre – a version of the Heuer 02 movement especially adapted for regatta timing.

Creating the 39mm case in 18K 5N rose gold, which combines fine brushed and polished finishes, elevates the Skipper to a level of sophistication that is sure to appeal to high-end collectors - but its usefulness as a fully-functional sailing watch remains uncompromised.

Like other variations of the glassbox Carrera – such as the Carrera Chronosprint x Porsche, the Carrera Tourbillon, and the Carrera Chronograph - the gold Skipper features an ingenious ‘curved flange’ dial beneath its crystal to ensure exceptional legibility in all conditions, especially when the watch is being used in a regatta situation for timing the vital 15-minute period before the starting gun is fired.

In terms of its colour scheme, the Skipper in gold harks back to the historic Skipper Reference 7754 of 1968 by combining a sea-blue main dial with two, sharply contrasting sub-dials – a 12-hour counter in ‘Intrepid Teal’ and a 15-minute regatta counter divided into three, five–minute segments of different colours.

These colours replicate those used on the original Skipper chronograph of 1968, which was launched under the leadership of Jack Heuer to celebrate the victory of the New York Yacht Club’s ‘Intrepid’ over New Zealand’s ‘Dame Pattie’ in the previous year’s America’s Cup.

Heuer had equipped Intrepid’s crew with hand-held yachting timers and Aquastar wrist watches for the event, the latter of which featured a countdown mechanism in the form of a red and white disc that rotated behind five holes. To mark the association with Intrepid, the Skipper’s tricolour 15-minute countdown subdial was divided in the following way: Lagoon Green (inspired by Intrepid’s rigging); Intrepid Teal (the colour of her deck) and, for the final five-minute ‘get ready’ sector, Regatta Orange – orange originally being adopted by the maritime world because of the exceptional way it contrasts against the sea.

Like the steel model, the Skipper in 18K 5N rose gold also features triangular markers (a motif drawn from heritage Heuer models) at five-minute intervals around the outer curved flange, a lacquered ‘regatta orange’ central seconds hand and a discreet ‘Skipper’ nameplate at the bottom of the 12-hour subdial.