Teams are go for 2025 Six Metre World Championships at Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club
by Fiona Brown 22 Sep 2025 10:06 BST
September 22-26, 2025
Registration is now complete and 29 teams from ten nations are ready to race for the 2025 Six Metre World Championships at the Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club on Long Island Sound. Racing for both the Open and Classic Championships will run from Monday 22 to Friday 26 October with up to eight races scheduled. The fleet comprises 17 Open Division boats and 12 Classics, both racing on the same course but starting separately.
The quality of the sailors participating is without doubt exceptional, as Cameron Wallace, the youngest skipper competing in the regatta, confirms: "Our team is pretty unique in the fact that we're all under the age of 28. So we lack the experience that a lot of these other boats have, but I think we make up for it because we all work together very well and we're all quite young and fit, so if the breeze comes up, we might be able to outdo some folks in that respect. Thanks to the generosity of Rainer Müller [who has lent them the Classic Six Metre SUI112 Ca Va, a 1938 Baron E. Wedell von Wedellsborg design] we have been able to put together a team and went to the North Americans last year in Anacortez, and now here we are in New York ready to do our first Worlds together.
"It's definitely a little bit of a who's who on the registration list so I try not to look at that too much to keep the nerves down! Fortunately, Ross MacDonald of Bribon has been coaching us for the last year and has been exceptionally generous donating his time. I think at the end of the day it's very much just about treating this like a normal regatta and then when it's over I'll probably take a deep breath and realise who was beside me on the starting line and I'll hopefully realise I didn't mess up too much!"
This is a development class and Dennis Conner has never shied away from trying something new, as his tactician Chris Poole, himself a top match racer, explains: "He's got a really interesting design, we've got a new boat and our designer is here with us, and Dennis is really excited to see how it goes against the other moderns. We've definitely taken a step away from the traditional Six Metre lines, as far as within the rules will allow, and so we potentially have a really quick boat in certain conditions. Dennis is just really looking forward to finding out where she's strong and where she might need to be even faster."
There is a strong entry from local teams who are delighted to see the fleet back at its historic US home, as Bill Mooney of USA40 Saleema, a 1928 Clinton H Crane design, explains: "It is so great for us at Seawanhaka to have the Six Metres back here. This has been going on for more than 100 years and to have everybody back here this year is so exciting for us, and we are so honoured to get to host this again. It's been I think 38 years since we last had the Worlds, and there are a number of boats that have come that have not been back here for many years. The boat I'm sailing was originally a Seawanhaka boat back in 1928, she left right away in 1928 and has not been back since. We are so happy to have her and several others back here. The camaraderie among everybody is amazing, we haven't even started yet and everybody is already having a great time together. We've got Dennis Conner, we've got Chris Poole, we've got the King of Spain, Jamie Hilton will be here and he's the current champion. And to have all of them want to come here is a real thrill for us."
With teams travelling from as far afield as Greece, Finland, the British Virgin Islands, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland and Canada it truly is an international cast. Heading the Canadian team is Peter Wealick, racing SUI115 Max'Inux with his daughter, who commented: "I am looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones. The racing venue is beautiful, and the weather looks promising. I am racing with my daughter this week and we are enormously proud to represent the indigenous people of Canada at the regatta." To find out more about the sailors competing check out the full Crew List.
Racing will be run under the supervision of International Race Officer Shannon Bush who heads up the SCYC team. The forecast for the regatta is for light airs, and when asked about what the competitors could expect on the water she explained: "Long Island Sound is going to be super tricky this week. The sailors will have to do their homework. We're out in the middle of the Sound, so that takes away a lot of the physical shoreline influence, and we're going to try and stay away from the super deep or super shallow areas. And it's like any other sailing event - you've got to stay in pressure and stay on the right tack!"
So, picking the winners is not easy. In the Open Division there are the known quantities like Laurence Clerc's SUI77 Junior, skippered by the legendary Nicolas Berthoud and Henrik Andersin's 2022 Oiva comes to the regatta as reigning European Champion. And one would be unwise to count out Basil Vasiliou's USA105 Jane Ann or the Greek team of Foti Lykiardopulo sailing GRE1 Aera. But with three brand new boats racing - Dennis Conner's ESP33, Rainer Mülller's SUI144 Eau Vive being sailed by reigning World Champion Jamie Hilton, and Dieter Schoen's new Momo II - it really is anyone's championship.
In the Classics, His Majesty King Juan Carlos of Spain's ESP16 Bribon, and ISMA Chairman Louis Heckly's FRA11 Fun will go head-to-head once again, but they face stiff competition. One should never underestimate Mauricio Sanchez-Bella's ESP72 Titia, and then there's the unknown quantity of the young bloods aboard SUI112 Ca Va, who might surprise everyone. And we cannot discount the beautiful USA56 Jill, built in 1931 and recently restored under the new ownership of renowned Italian sailor Alessandro Maria Rinaldi of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. And perhaps one of our centenarians will prevail with 1922's USA14 SYCE, and 1924's USA21 Madcap both keen to prove that age is just a number.
Racing is due to get under way at 11:30 on Monday 22 September and continues until Friday 26 September, with eight races scheduled and five races required to validate a championship.
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