|
|
 |
|
Saturday, July 11, 2026
|
|
Frith & Greenslade crowned BDA Team Racing Champions
|
Alan Frith and Josh Greenslade have carved their names into the history books by becoming the first ever Bermuda Team Racing National Champions following a superb display of tactical sailing on Hamilton Harbor.
The landmark event, hosted by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, saw the island's top sailors battle it out in a fleet of J80 keelboats. Competitors completed two full round-robin stages and the opening race of a third before race officials, with the top two positions firmly established, moved directly to the knockout finale.
In the best-of-three grand final, the powerhouse pairing of Frith and Greenslade produced a clinical performance to secure a straight-sets two-nil victory over the formidable duo of Christian Ebbin and Benn Smith.
The unique team racing format saw the six-boat fleet paired up into three distinct two-boat teams. Joining the champions and the runners-up in the inaugural fleet was the third-placed partnership of William Reid and Michael Wollman.
The victorious effort was a true team performance across both crews. Greenslade’s boat was expertly crewed by Ellie Cumpsty, Emily Davis, and Eli Furbert, while Frith’s successful vessel was manned by Ruth Mello-Cann, Sebastian Round, and Samantha Dill.
The silver-medalist pairing also boasted plenty of talent, with Ebbin supported by Sophia Dias and PJ Rodrigues, while Smith was assisted by Julia Lines and Trystan Hocking. Rounding out the fleet, Reid sailed alongside Freddie Lawson, Jeff Bennett, and David Leach, while Wollman’s crew consisted of Aiden McPhaill, Tre Maxwell, and George Buckley.
With the national silverware now decided, the event provides the ideal springboard for Bermuda's elite sailors as they continue their preparations for next month's World Championships in Sweden.
|
|
|
Friday, July 10, 2026
|
|
All Nations Confirmed for the Team Championship 2026
|
First Time Ever in Europe The starting field is now complete. All 12 nations have confirmed their participation in the 2026 Team Racing World Championship for keelboats, to be held in Stockholm on 12–16 August.
This confirms that the Swedish capital will become the meeting place for the world’s leading team racing sailors when the championship is staged in Europe for the very first time. The 12 nations are Australia, Bahamas, Bermuda, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Sweden, UK, USA 1, USA 2.
The championship will take place on Riddarfjärden, in the very heart of Stockholm, and is organised by Gamla Stans Yacht Sällskap on behalf of World Sailing.
Twelve national teams from four continents will compete, with a total of 96 sailors. “That all nations are now confirmed shows the strong international interest in both the championship and Stockholm as a sailing venue.
This will be a world championship of the highest calibre, both competitively and in terms of public appeal,” says Magnus Myrenberg, Project Manager for the 2026 Team Racing World Championship. Stockholm Selected After International Tender Following an international bidding process, Stockholm was selected ahead of several other candidate host cities. Decisive factors included the city’s experience in stadium-style sailing and Gamla Stans Yacht Sällskap’s long-standing work with the Stockholm International Team Race Regatta (SITR), which has been held annually since 2016.
“Being awarded the championship is recognition of many years of long-term work together with our partners and the City of Stockholm. The 2026 Team Racing World Championship will be one of the most accessible and spectator-friendly sailing events ever held in Sweden,” says Magnus Myrenberg. A World Championship in the Heart of the City Racing will take place from 12–16 August 2026 on Riddarfjärden, directly adjacent to Stockholm City Hall.
The location offers outstanding spectator experiences from quays, bridges and elevated viewpoints around the bay, including Västerbron, Skinnarviksberget and Norr Mälarstrand. The event is free of charge and open to the public. Team Racing is one of the most gender-equal disciplines in sailing. Each national eight person team must consist of at least three women and three men.
The championship will be sailed in identical J/80 boats and feature more than 140 intense matches in a highly spectator-friendly format. The event hub will be the Sailors’ Village at Norr Mälarstrand, bringing together race management, media, public areas, cafés, sponsor zones and grandstands. Visitors will also be able to take part in try-sailing activities, radio-controlled sailing and after-sail events.
Defending Champions Prepare for Stockholm Last year’s world champions are already setting their sights on Stockholm. Will Bailey, skipper of the reigning Corinthian world champion team, describes the build-up to the 2026 championship as both challenging and inspiring:
“Racing in J/80s is new for us, so there’s been a steep learning curve. Being able to train right in the city, on a harbour course similar to Stockholm, has been incredibly valuable,” says Bailey. He also highlights what makes Team Racing so compelling: “The races are short, intense and incredibly close. Anyone can win any race, which makes it exciting for sailors and spectators alike.” Sustainability at the Core Sustainability is a central pillar of the event.
All transport within Stockholm will be emission-free, support boats will primarily be electric or powered by biofuel, and food and waste management will follow the World Sailing Sustainability Framework.
Facts:
Team Racing World Championship 2026 Dates: 12–16 August 2026 (training day 11 August)
Venue: Riddarfjärden, Stockholm Organiser: Gamla Stans Yacht Sällskap Rights Holder: World Sailing
|
|
|
Thursday, July 09, 2026
|
|
Bermuda Launch Inaugural National Team Racing Championship
|
Bermuda's burgeoning team racing community is set to mark a historic milestone this weekend as the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club hosts the island’s first ever Bermuda Team Racing National Championships.
The landmark event represents the first major domestic initiative launched by the Bermuda Team Racing Association, a body formed last autumn following the island's performance at the Global Team Race Regatta in October.
Organizers are expecting high-intensity action on the water, with three two-boat teams—comprising six to eight sailors per squad—set to battle for the inaugural national title in J80 keelboats.
The tournament format will see the teams compete in one or more round-robin stages, with the top two teams advancing to a winner-takes-all, first-to-three-wins grand final.
While domestic silverware is at stake this Saturday, the creation of the National Championships serves a much larger strategic purpose. The entire enterprise has been designed to prepare Bermuda’s elite sailors for a high-profile assault on the upcoming 2026 Team Racing World Championships, which will take place in Stockholm, Sweden, from August 12 to 16.
With the global showpiece in Sweden also being contested in J80s, the national event offers invaluable, sharp competitive minutes for the official Bermuda national squad, which was selected back in April.
The national team heading to Stockholm features two settled crews:
Boat One: Joshua Greenslade (skipper), Amelia Lewis, Emily Davis, and Aiden Young.
Boat Two: Alan Frith (skipper), Cecilia Wollman, Samantha Dill, and Sebastian Round.
Saturday's racing promises to provide the perfect high-pressure environment as Bermuda tunes up to take on the world’s best next month.
|
|
|
Wednesday, July 08, 2026
|
|
Thrash Win Week 13 of Wednesday Night Sailing Series
|
Week 13 of the Wednesday Night Sailing Series delivered another reminder that in handicap racing, crossing the finish line first doesn't always mean taking home the honors.
Nasty Medicine looked every bit the boat to beat as it stormed across the finish line first, posting a blistering elapsed time of 1:10:12. But once the handicap calculations were applied, the leaderboard told a different story. Their corrected time of 1:17:00 dropped them to sixth, leaving the door wide open for the rest of the fleet.
Crossfire wasn't far behind on the water, finishing second across the line in 1:11:01, but the handicap system proved unforgiving. A corrected time of 1:18:20 saw them tumble to 13th, one of the night's biggest swings between elapsed and corrected standings.
The third boat home, Airforce, showed exactly why consistency and smart sailing matter in handicap competition. Despite an elapsed time of 1:20:08, their corrected time of 1:15:50 vaulted them into second place, narrowly missing out on the weekly victory.
That honor belonged to Thrash, whose superb corrected time of 1:15:30 edged the competition to claim the Week 13 crown. It was a composed, efficient performance that proved enough to top a tightly contested fleet.
Scatteraction secured the final podium spot with a corrected time of 1:16:27, finishing just ahead of Celerity, whose 1:16:36 was good enough for fourth in another razor-close battle. Vrengen completed the top five on corrected time, rounding out the leaders with a corrected time of 1:30:52.
Week 13 showcased everything that makes the Wednesday Night Sailing Series so compelling. While raw speed earned Nasty Medicine the bragging rights for line honors, it was Thrash that mastered the handicap formula, turning strategy and execution into victory. With only seconds separating several of the top finishers on corrected time, the championship battle continues to tighten as the series heads into its final stretch.
Wednesday Night Sailing Series Race Day 13
1:15:30 Thrash
1:15:50 Airforce
1:16:27 Scatteraction
1:16:36 Celerity
1:16:54 Vrengen
1:17:00 Nasty Medicine
1:17:00 Back in Black
1:17:07 Fat Tuesday
1:17:57 Peppercorn
1:18:08 Windfire
1:18:13 Solna II
1:18:17 Tiburon
1:18:20 Crossfire
1:18:24 Lorato Makato
1:18:42 Privateer
1:19:24 Jitterbug
1:21:05 RS 21 3 LEACH
1:21:14 Menace
1:22:18 Shogun
1:22:46 Lix
1:23:35 RS 21 2 REDBURN
1:23:51 RS 21 1 NEAME
1:24:04 RS 21 6 SAVAGE
1:24:39 Shadow
1:24:49 RS 21 4 REID
1:25:15 RS 21 5 FRANK
1:31:48 Severn
RET Grace
|
|
|
Thursday, July 02, 2026
|
|
Bermuda Gold Cup to Sail New Boats
|
The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club (RBYC) has officially released the Notice of Race for the 2026 Bermuda Gold Cup, taking place from October 13-18, 2026. A premier championship stage on the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT), this year's regatta features a $50,000 prize purse and marks the highly anticipated racing debut of RBYC’s brand-new fleet of Fareast 28R match racing boats.
The introduction of the high-performance Fareast 28R fleet represents a transformative milestone for this historic event, stepping into the shoes of the iconic International One Design (IOD) fleet that defined the Gold Cup's legacy for decades. Transitioning from the heavy, traditional full-keel IODs, the modern Fareast 28R racing platforms are renowned for their lightweight agility, high planing speeds, and strict one-design uniformity. This evolution from classic displacement sailing to high-speed racing will present a fresh, highly dynamic tactical challenge on Hamilton Harbour. Crucially, the lighter handling underpins a strong commitment to diversity, with organizers aiming to fill the 12-team roster with a minimum of four top-tier women’s teams, showcasing the highest level of female talent on the world tour.
This world-class sporting spectacle is made possible through the generous and longstanding support of sponsors; the Bermuda Tourism Authority (BTA) and RenaissanceRe. Their partnership ensures that Bermuda continues to stand out as a premier global destination for competitive sailing, while fostering opportunities for top athletes from across the globe.
With the Notice of Race now published, the skipper selection process has formally commenced. Due to high demand for the 12 available spots, interested teams are encouraged to urgently submit their requests for an invitation by contacting the RBYC sailing office at sailing@rbyc.bm
|
|
|
|
