2025 Dutch Water Week - Day 4

2025 Dutch Water Week © Sailing Energy

The penultimate day of the Dutch Water Week brought Olympic-class sailing and windsurfing right into the heart of Almere.

On the Weerwater, at the end of the city's main shopping street, spectators could watch world-class athletes race almost within arm's reach. The format delivered a unique blend of sport and spectacle: racing close to shore, with the city itself as a grandstand.

The day began under clear skies and sunshine, before rain showers later added a typical Dutch backdrop in the afternoon. But neither the sailors nor the public seemed to mind.

ILCA 7: Beckett Leads, Bos in Pursuit

In the ILCA 7, Great Britain's Michael Beckett remains in the lead with 18 points, but Dutch sailor Duko Bos has climbed into second overall, keeping the fight alive ahead of the final day.

Bos reflected on racing right in Almere's city centre:

"It's new, and I'm still figuring out how to sail it. In this format you want to take more risks, which isn't really my natural style, so that takes some getting used to. We also have a gate instead of one top mark — normally we always round to the left, but here you can also go right. I found out today, I can't really do that; I've never practiced it, and it felt very awkward. But with the spectators slowly building up, that's pretty cool. On a lake like this, so close to shore, anything can happen — it makes the racing interesting."

ILCA 6: World-Class Field, Dutch in the Mix

Ireland's Eve McMahon continued her strong week, leading the ILCA 6 standings after eleven races. Poland's Agata Barwinska and Norway's Line Flem Høst are in hot pursuit. Dutch sailor Roos Wind delivered steady results and holds fifth place in this strong field, while Maxime van de Werken-Jonker was disqualified after several yellow flags for pumping.

2025 Dutch Water Week - photo © Sailing Energy

Zoe Thomson (AUS, ILCA 6) said earlier during the week: "It's an interesting week. The shorter races and the gate at the top mark make it close, with leverage in areas we don't usually have in ILCA racing. It's fun, and I think it will be even more so, if we move to the Weerwater. That will really shake things up again."

iQFOiL: Patience Today, Early Start Tomorrow

The iQFOiL fleets were held ashore today due to a lack of sufficient and stable wind on the Weerwater. They will be back in action on Sunday morning at 09:00, starting with the quarterfinals. With everything still wide open, the windsurfers are set to deliver a thrilling finale to Dutch Water Week.

Johan Søe (DEN, iQFOiL) was very happy with his performance so far. Søe said at the end of play on Friday: "I've been testing my gear at home, and it seems to be working really well so far. My tactics here have also been good, and with solid speed and strong attacks it's all been coming together nicely. I'm happy with how the day went and looking forward to the rest of the week."

49er Class: Dutch Armada Joins the Battle

A special highlight was the entry of ten Dutch teams in the 49er class, who joined the Sailing Grand Slam format racing for the first time. Robbert Huisman and Jorn Swart impressed with consistent sailing and top three finishes, leading the Dutch fleet ahead of Olympians and three-time world champions Bart Lambriex and Floris van de Werken, who sit close behind. With all ten teams showing competitive spirit, the Dutch presence turned the City Centre racing into a true home crowd celebration.

2025 Dutch Water Week - photo © Sailing Energy

More to Come

On the final day, the athletes will race under two innovative formats for the finals, designed to test new ways of making sailing more exciting and easier to follow for fans.

Format A (ILCA 6)

• Ten athletes compete across the event, earning points by adding up their race positions (e.g. 1-1-1 = 3 points).
• The top five athletes qualify for the final.
• The final is sailed in three races. The top five each get awarded points equal to their ranking.
• After three races, the athlete with the lowest score is crowned the winner.

Format B (ILCA 7 and iQFOiL)

• Ten athletes compete throughout the event. Only the top 3 finishers in each race score points:
  • 1st place = 3 points
  • 2nd place = 2 points
  • 3rd place = 1 point
  • All others = 0 points
• On Sunday, these classes start with the quarter-final, where athletes ranked 3 to 10 compete.
• The top four of that quarter-final advance to the semi-final, where they join the top two overall (who had a bye).
• The semi-final features six athletes, with the top three advancing to the final.

One single race decides it all: the winner of the final race is crowned champion.

Official results (after Day 4):

• Full ILCA 7 results are available here
• Full ILCA 6 results are available here
• Full IQFoil results are available here
• Full 49er results are available here