Victor Tchetchet (June 19, 1891 – April 26, 1974) was a pioneering early modern multihull sailboat designer from Ukraine (at his birth part of the Russian Empire) who is thought to have coined the term ' trimaran', [1] though Éric de Bisschop built a trimaran in France earlier.[ citation needed] He was also a landscape and portrait painter. [2] [3] [4]
Born in Kyiv, Victor was inspired by South Pacific outriggers to connect two 18 ft (5.5 m) canoes to make a catamaran and enter the Kyiv Imperial Yacht Club's local races. After winning, he was disqualified. [1]
In 1923 Tchetchet emigrated to New York City and further experimented with catamarans and trimarans. [1] In 1945 he launched his first trimaran, of 24 ft (7.3 m) length. [1]
Tchetchet entered the Marblehead Race Week in 1946. Despite a poor performance, his participation helped to overcome the local prejudice against multihulls after Nathanael Herreshoff's 1876 win with the catamaran Amaryllis at the New York Yacht Club's Centennial Regatta. [1] In the same year, he established the International Multihull Boat Racing Association. [1]
Victor Tchetchet's boat designs include the following: