Feb 20, 2020
Reading time 3 min.
Chrono for a Cause: IWC Portugieser Hand-Wound Monopusher "Laureus Sport for Good"
WATCH TO WATCH
With its annual new product showcase at Watches & Wonders Geneva (né SIHH) pushed to late April, IWC Schaffhausen is keeping most of its 2020 releases under wraps until then. However, the brand did unveil one new timepiece this week, the latest in its series of collaborations with the Laureus Sport for Good initiative and the first in its long-running Portugieser family outfitted with a monopusher chronograph.
With its annual new product showcase at Watches & Wonders Geneva (né SIHH) pushed to late April, IWC Schaffhausen is keeping most of its 2020 releases under wraps until then. (I've seen them, and trust me, they're cool and worth the wait.) However, the brand did unveil one new timepiece this week, the latest in its series of collaborations with the Laureus Sport for Good initiative and the first in its long-running Portugieser family outfitted with a monopusher chronograph.
The IWC Portugieser Manual-Wind Monopusher Edition "Laureus Sport for Good" is limited to 500 pieces.
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The IWC Portugieser Hand-Wound Monopusher Edition "Laureus Sport for Good" follows up last year's Laureus edition from the Aquatimer family, continuing the series' tradition by donating proceeds from this 500-piece limited edition to the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, a worldwide charity that supports programs using “the power of sport” to affect positive social change. The watch has a 46-mm stainless steel case and the traditional dial in "Laureus blue," accented by rhodium-plated hands and hour numerals. The dial's layout features a 60-minute chronograph counter at 12 o'clock, a date window at 3 o'clock, small seconds subdial at 6 o'clock, and an indicator for the watch's impressive eight-day (192-hour) power reserve at 9 o'clock. A single push-button ('monopusher") embedded in the large fluted crown controls the chronograph functions — starting, stopping, and resetting the stopwatch to zero with simple pushes of the button.
The engraved caseback features the winning drawing from IWC's annual contest.
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Inside the 30-meter water-resistant case, the movement that drives all these displays, the manually wound Caliber 59360 beats at a brisk frequency of 28,800 vph (4 Hz). Also in keeping with IWC's Laureus tradition, this movement is hidden behind a very special, engraved caseback featuring the winning design of the watch manufacturer's annual drawing competition for the child participants of Laureus projects. This year's winning illustration, depicting friendship, comes from 15-year-old Yi Xin, a Special Olympian from China supported by the Laureus Foundation. The watch comes with a black alligator leather strap made by Italy's Santoni, a longtime provider of luxurious straps for IWC watches.
The Portugieser Hand-Wound Monopusher Edition "Laureus Sport for Good" retails for $16,600. And does the fact that this year's Laureus edition hails from the Portugieser family and features a new complication be a hint as to what we'll see from IWC in April? Could be... Stay tuned.
