Yacht Racing Articles
The race had launched from Kiel in front of packed docks and grandstands, the IMOCA fleet blasting away in strong breeze with the bows barely touching the water. The first mark wasn’t far, but neither was trouble. A few sharp tacks, a burst of speed, and then – bang. Fibreglass, foam, and hopes dashed.
All crew are safe, but the mood was heavy back at the dock. “I don’t have any answer.
© Vincent Curutchet / The Ocean Race Europe 2025
Collision, chaos, and a flying start – The Ocean Race Europe
12-08-2025
The route? Baltic chill to Adriatic charm, via the English Channel, Atlantic rollers, Gibraltar’s bottleneck and the sunburnt Med. Five offshore legs, one coastal dash, double points on the second leg, and just enough fly-bys, scoring gates and headlands to keep nav tables steaming and crews sleep-deprived.
The opener? Kiel to Portsmouth — a tight, technical first leg. Expect tide, traffic, and tactical hair-splitting before the fleet ties up in Cowes by Friday.
11-08-2025
Cowes Week began under a light north‑westerly breeze, with all eyes on the forecast: Storm Floris, emerging from Iceland, promised a dramatic shift in wind direction and intensity later in the day
Due to the lighter airs and anticipated changes, race officials postponed the start for two hours and shifted larger Black‑Group yachts off the Royal Yacht Squadron (RYS) line to a committee‑boat start off Beaulieu, while smaller keelboats and one‑design fleets, including the J/70s, SB20s, Etchells, Dragons, Flying 15s and others, were held offshore near Thorness before any gun was fired
06-08-2025
Will Farnell Named ORCV Youth Sailor of the Year
The Ocean Racing Club of Victoria has named 16-year-old Will Farnell as its 2025 Youth Sailor of the Year — a fitting title for a young man who’s already logged more sea miles than many twice his age, and who carries the saltwater tradition in his bones.
04-08-2025
In a bid to avoid conflicts with other regattas and uphold tradition, Edgartown Yacht Club recently announced the shift of the Edgartown Race Weekend's 'RTI Race' from June back to July.
03-08-2025
CHERBOURG, July 2025 — The rain eased and the rum bottles emptied as dawn broke over Port Chantereyne, Cherbourg. The tension, the tides, and the spinnakers finally settled after one of the closest Admiral’s Cup battles in decades, with Peter Harrison and Monaco’s own Pierre Casiraghi leading Team Jolt to a dramatic win aboard their TP52 Jolt 3 and the Carkeek 40 Jolt 6. Ten points clear of Karl Kwok’s ever-formidable Beau Geste, the Royal Thames lads (with help from the Yacht Club de Monaco) stood tallest after a week of ferocious racing.
02-08-2025
The Rolex Admiral’s Cup fleet spent a wild second night offshore, taking on the long, punishing beat through the Celtic Sea. The wind wasn’t ferocious, but the sea state was—big Atlantic swell, relentless chop, and a hard-earned haul towards one of offshore racing’s most iconic landmarks: the Fastnet Rock. Standing 54 metres tall, forged from Cornish granite, the lighthouse marks more than just a turning point in the Rolex Fastnet Race. In its 100th edition, it’s a century-old beacon of salt, grit, and glory.
01-08-2025
Rolex Fastnet Race | Admiral’s Cup Dispatch – July 2025
There’s a new name at the top—and it’s flying the Dutch tricolour. The young guns aboard ROST Van Uden (RMYC) have clawed their way into the AC1 lead on corrected time, and they’ve done it with nerve, timing, and a whole lot of boat speed. With 150nm to go, they’re three hours ahead after IRC correction and showing no sign of blinking.
01-08-2025
Its started on Saturday 26 July 2025
Veterans of the last two Rolex Fastnet Races are checking the weather with cautious optimism. After two editions that opened with 30-knot headwinds and a battering Channel slog, the long-range forecast for this centenary running looks — dare we say it — gentle.
31-07-2025
After the cannon roared, the fleet scattered like gulls in a gale. Black Pearl (YCCS), skippered by Stefan Jentzch, wasted no time — tacking straight toward the mainland shore. She sniffed out a lift and took it like a thief in the night, gaining ground fast. But out near the island side, Jolt 3 (YCM) helmed by Peter Harrison, was all business — early leader on the water and staying sticky to the fleet like barnacles on a buoy.
30-07-2025
As the Admiral’s Cup fleet thundered west toward Start Point, the gloves were off and the tactics got real. The leaders split north of the rhumb line—Black Pearl taking the high road, while Eric de Turckheim’s Teasing Machine dug in low and fast to the south. Black Pearl rounded Start Point with a boat length to spare over Jolt 3, both storming along at nine knots. Slightly offshore, Rán and Teasing Machine were pushing harder, notching up close to ten.
29-07-2025
Hawaiian sunshine, stories in the rigging, and rum in hand — the final Transpac 2025 prize-giving brought down the curtain in style on one of the world’s great ocean races. Held Saturday, July 19 at Kaneohe Yacht Club, the last of three awards ceremonies gave crews, skippers, and families a chance to celebrate not just the winners, but the sheer feat of making it across 2,225 miles of the Pacific Ocean.
26-07-2025
The 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race marks 100 years of hard offshore truth — and the multihull fleet has shown up in force. A record 20 boats are racing in the MOCRA class, all gunning for the coveted Crystal Trophy, a prize that’s older than some of the hulls — and certainly a few of the crews.
25-07-2025
The Admiral’s Cup roared to life with a deceptively light start — and then reminded everyone why it’s earned its legend. The 160nm Channel Race looked tame leaving the Solent, but by sunrise the next day, the fleet limped back soaked to the skin, eyes red and salt-blasted. A confused sea, building pressure topping 25 knots, and a foaming downwind leg back from France — it was a full-pelt Atlantic slap in the face. The final reach to the finish? A screecher, with kites straining and helms gritted.
24-07-2025
Its starts on Saturday 26 July 2025
Veterans of the last two Rolex Fastnet Races are checking the weather with cautious optimism. After two editions that opened with 30-knot headwinds and a battering Channel slog, the long-range forecast for this centenary running looks — dare we say it — gentle.
24-07-2025
With just under a week left to run, the 2025 Transpac fleet is officially past halfway, surfing westward across the Pacific towards Honolulu’s Diamond Head. After setting off in staggered starts on July 1, 3, and 5, 53 yachts of every style and strategy—ranging from 35 to 88 feet—have now picked up the trades, leaving behind fickle calms and early retirements (four boats have dropped out). The leaderboard is starting to shape up, but the race is far from over.
22-07-2025
Wouldn’t be the first time a Jean-Pierre Kelbert design came in sideways and stole the silverware. His initials are stamped on the transom — literally — and his boats have a reputation for upsetting the pecking order in offshore racing. The 34-foot JPK 1050 might just be the sharpest new weapon in a fleet of 73, and it’s already shown a flash of brilliance.
20-07-2025
Revived by the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) for its centenary year and to be held biennially thereafter, the 2025 edition promises high-performance racing, intense offshore challenges, and a celebration of sailing heritage.
18-07-2025
The Admiral’s Cup returns to Cowes from 17 July to 1 August 2025, reviving offshore sailing’s iconic team race. National teams will compete in inshore and offshore events, celebrating Corinthian spirit, tradition, and global competition on the Solent.
17-07-2025
The 20 biggest, fastest boats racing in the 2025 Transpac began their offshore sprint from Los Angeles, California, to Honolulu, Hawaii, today. Ranging in length from 51 to 88 feet, these boats are competing in four divisions and also aiming to win the race’s two most prestigious prizes. The Barn Door Trophy honours the boat with the fastest elapsed time across the 2,225 nautical mile racecourse, while the King Kalakaua Trophy is awarded to the team that posts the fastest corrected time using the Offshore Racing Rule handicap system.
12-07-2025
The seventh regatta of the 2025 EurILCA Europa Cup Trophy kicked off yesterday in Warnemünde, Germany, with the first two races.
A total of 302 sailors from 32 countries are competing in the ILCA 4, ILCA 6, and ILCA 7 classes.
The weather, unlike the previous day’s forecast, was overcast with a few raindrops, but the wind was steady and reliable.
10-07-2025
British skipper Sam Goodchild celebrated his first victory in the IMOCA Class yesterday after crossing the finish line of the Course des Caps - Boulogne-sur-Mer - Banque Populaire du Nord, a 1,800-nautical mile sprint around Britain and Ireland.
10-07-2025
IRC Zero has a rich seam of ocean-going history running through it. While French round the world race legend Jean-Luc Van Den Heede (aka VDH) isn’t competing in the Rolex Fastnet Race, two of his former steeds will be on the IRC Zero start line.
10-07-2025
Just 100 days to go until SailGP – the most exciting racing on water – takes flight on the stunning Bay of Cadíz, the global racing championship has today announced that Global Smart Logistics Partner, DP World, will become Title Partner of the Spain Sail Grand Prix, the penultimate event of the 2025 Season Calendar. Unfolding over two action-packed days of racing in the Andalucía region of Spain (October 4-5, 2025), the event marks SailGP’s fourth visit to the city of Cádiz.
10-07-2025
Onboard Reporters in the Course des Caps: up close with the sailors and enjoying the challenge of bringing the race to life
09-07-2025
Seventeen boats begin the 2,225-mile Pacific Crossing in light air conditions in Transpac's second start
The chase is on in the 53rd edition of the 2025 Transpacific Yacht Race, with 17 boats in three divisions departing Los Angeles today on their 2,225-mile journey to Honolulu. While these boats are competing within their own divisions, they are also chasing down the 16 entrants that started on Tuesday, July 1—preparing to be chased by 20 more that start on Saturday, July 5.
08-07-2025
Ferrari Sets Sail: The Hypersail Project Blends Automotive Genius with Oceanic Innovation
Ferrari, a name synonymous with blistering speed, engineering precision, and automotive luxury, has made a bold move beyond racetracks and into the realm of offshore sailing. In an announcement that stunned both the automotive and maritime worlds, Ferrari unveiled Project Hypersail, an audacious fusion of Formula 1-grade technology, renewable energy, and cutting-edge naval architecture.
05-07-2025
Hamilton Island Race Week’s 40th anniversary celebrations are hotting up, with more than 160 entries confirmed for the annual sailing regatta to be contested from 16-23 August in the glorious Whitsunday Islands.
05-07-2025
The 16 boats that crossed the starting line today in the 2025 Transpac are up against the challenge of a lifetime. As the smallest yachts in this year’s 53-strong fleet, they are about to endure the greatest number of difficult days at sea, but they also have the greatest—and longest—opportunity to enjoy the splendours of sailing across the Pacific. After all, the more time one spends at sea, the more exposure one has to its moods and its majesty.
04-07-2025
The fight to claim the prestigious monohull line honours prize in the centenary edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s Rolex Fastnet Race is lining up to be a tough one between the world’s fastest 100ft maxi yachts. The winner of the Erivale Trophy for monohull line honours will follow a long line of the most significant offshore racing yachts of all time, such as Rambler 88, Comanche, ICAP Leopard 3, Alfa Romeo, Stealth, Steinlager 2, Congere, Nirvana, Condor, American Eagle, Gitana IV, Stormvogel, Latifa, among many others.
03-07-2025
Marstrand challenges Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team in one of the toughest regattas on the circuit
Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team wrapped up their participation in the 44Cup Marstrand in 10th place after a week marked by extreme weather conditions that tested the international sailing elite. Strong winds and a rough sea state caused by Friday’s storm created a technically and physically demanding setting, even forcing the cancellation of the previous day’s racing for safety reasons.
03-07-2025
Day 1 - 44Cup Marstrand, 25 June 2025: The Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team began their participation in the 44Cup Marstrand with an intense day on the water, marked by sunny conditions, gusty winds, and a series of incidents that impacted the day’s results.
02-07-2025
SailGP has today announced that the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team, has officially been acquired by a consortium of accomplished investors and sports industry leaders, including Hollywood royalty, Anne Hathaway. The consortium is led by Muse Capital founding partner, Assia Grazioli-Venier, and luxury brand entrepreneur, Gian Luca Passi de Preposulo, with one of the world’s most decorated sailors and SailGP icon, Jimmy Spithill, as CEO and co-owner.
29-05-2025
A Royal Navy warship and a tall ship will be attending and participating in the 38th Falmouth Classics Regatta from 13th – 15th June.
HMS Express, number 163, one of sixteen Archer Class P2000 fast patrol boats and assigned to the Devonport based Coastal Forces Squadron will be in the Port of Falmouth during the Classics Regatta.
24-05-2025