Giovanni Costantino, the founder who resigned as chairman and chief executive of The Italian Sea Group in July, is seeking to return to the board he stepped down from. He tops the list of candidates submitted by GC Holding, his own holding company, ahead of the shareholders’ meeting called to appoint a new board on 30 September.
GC Holding controls 53.604 per cent of TISG’s share capital and 69.795 per cent of voting rights, and is the company’s sole relevant shareholder under current disclosure rules. Alongside Costantino, the list names Saverio Schiavone and Gabriella Covino, both lawyers with the firm Gianni Origoni Grippo, academic Sabrina Bruno, and Massimo Mallegni, who recently took on the role of head of institutional relations at TISG.
The outgoing board has proposed reducing the new board from seven directors to five, with seats allocated from lists submitted by shareholders holding at least 2.5 per cent of capital. At least one director must meet independence requirements, and at least two seats are reserved for the less represented gender. As of 14 September, no rival list had been submitted for the linked vote on the board of statutory auditors, according to Italian financial news service Teleborsa.
Costantino’s resignation, along with that of his son and fellow director Gianmaria, triggered the dissolution of TISG’s entire board in July, after the majority of shareholder appointed directors were no longer in office. The board has continued to operate on a caretaker basis since, pending the new appointment.
The board vote is separate from, but runs alongside, TISG’s ongoing sale process. Non-binding offers for all or part of the group are due by 15 September, with binding bids due 15 October and a signing tentatively targeted for 26 October, subject to approval from the court appointed commissioners overseeing the restructuring.
John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
