RORC North Sea Race 2026 - Jetpack powers home
by Louay Habib / RORC 17 May 17:01 BST
15 May 2026
Diederik Forma's Dutch JPK 1030 Jetpack - RORC North Sea Race 2026 © Paul Wyeth / RORC
Diederik Forma's Dutch JPK 1030 Jetpack, racing double-handed with Martijn Graafmans, secured overall victory in the 2026 North Sea Race after IRC time correction by a margin of 22 minutes 37 seconds.
Rob Craigie's British Sun Fast 3600 Bellino, raced two handed with RORC Commodore Deb Fish, finished second. Michel Dorsman's Dutch MAT 1070 Checkmate took third, a further 16 minutes 48 seconds behind. Fourth by just two minutes and five seconds was Jan Scholtes J/99 Warp 5.
The overall win under IRC also marked a satisfying reversal of fortunes, as in the 2025 North Sea Race, Craigie's Bellino claimed overall victory by just 53 seconds from Forma's Jetpack.
The 2026 North Sea Race was shaped by steady conditions and long downwind legs. Jetpack's winning performance hinged on smart configuration choices and consistent pace, particularly on the decisive run after Smith's Knoll. For Jetpack's owner Forma, the result carried added significance, not as revenge, but as the reward for competing against strong double-handed sailors from both sides of the North Sea.
"It's very nice to be on top of the table, especially racing against Rob (Craigie) and Deb (Fish), there's a lot of respect there," said Forma. "It doesn't feel like revenge, it's just great competition at a really high level, and that's what makes it so satisfying. The biggest gains came on the long downwind leg when we switched to the symmetric setup, that really worked for us and we managed to sail low and fast.
"Racing double-handed; trust is everything. We can both do everything on board, and that flexibility makes a big difference, we can make decisions independently and get proper rest. To win overall for the first time, and to do it into Scheveningen, our home port, it's extra special. It's something we've been working towards for years, and for it to finally come together like this is a dream come true."
The North Sea Race Prize Giving was held at Yacht Club Scheveningen. RORC Racing Manager Chris Jackson introduced RORC Commodore Deb Fish to award the prizes supported by Yacht Club Scheveningen Sailing Committee Chair Frans van Cappelle. Jetpack collected a haul of trophies winning the Goeree Challenge Cup for IRC Overall, the Carter-Ruck Trophy for IRC Three, the Golden Dragon Trophy for IRC Two-handed and the City of Hague Trophy for Best Yacht from Yacht Club Scheveningen. The C70 Trophy (The Netherlands v Great Britain) was won by the Netherlands.
The Dutch Ker 46 Van Uden, sailed by the Rotterdam Offshore Sailing Team and skippered by van Veen & van Dongen secured Line Honours in the North Sea Race in an elapsed time of 20:22:35, winning IRC Zero and the Wylie Trophy
Cas van Dongen, the 28 year old co-skipper of Van Uden, reflected on the performance of the young Rotterdam Offshore Sailing Club team, the 13 Dutch sailors on board range in age from 18-30.
The ROST campaign is focused on building experience together as a crew, racing in key events in both the Netherlands and in the UK, and steadily preparing for the Admiral's Cup next year," commented van Dongen. "We pushed hard on speed with a lot of time on deck hiking and had precision on peels between spinnaker and Code Zero. We had some beautiful runs downwind at night. Being the lead boat we were hoping to get more wind from the north but it was a little lighter than we expected. Looking forward, this race has helped our young squad in our aim to turn potential into consistent results over the coming seasons."
IRC 1
Hugo Gommers's Landmark 43 Olympix took the win on IRC corrected time for the Lutine Trophy. Verhoef and van der Starre's XR 41 X-Esteem, racing two handed was second. Menno Vercouteren's Grand Soleil 43 Euphoria completed the podium, finishing behind X-Esteem. Harry Rek's Dehler 41 Barracuda was only 40 minutes off the podium. The top four in IRC 1 were separated by less than an hour, a tight contest that highlighted the competitive balance in the class.
IRC 2
Michel Dorsman's MAT 1070 Checkmate secured the win by 1 hour 14 minutes 9 seconds after IRC time correction winning the Joannes Pompejus Memorial Cup. Roland Claeys' Elan 400 NRJ-Ball was runner-up with van Cappelle & Witsenburg's J/122 Moana finished a further 10 minutes 22 seconds behind in third.
IRC 3 & IRC Two Handed
Jetpack and Bellino occupied the top two places in the ten-strong IRC Three Class. Jan Scholtes J/99 Warp 5 corrected out to complete the IRC Three class podium, while Simon Farren's A40 Warrior, racing with Ben Harden, was third in IRC Two Handed.
IRC 4
Thomas Moriarty's vintage Swan 44 Astrid, skippered by his son Paddy Moriarty and crewed by a team in their early twenties, secured back-to-back class victories in the North Sea Race, to retain the Jan Moreton Salver. Radboud Crul's Dehler 36 Rosetta finished second, with Willem Schopman's Sun Fast 3200 Waverider taking third place.
Astrid's class win was not just a success on the water, but a reflection of RORC's commitment to welcome youth sailing into the sport. The North Sea Race attracted 200 sailors and the largest age group was 18-25 year olds including Van Uden and the RORC Griffin Pathway team with their entire crews formed with youth sailors. With 32 women racing, the race also highlighted steady progress towards greater inclusion, painting an encouraging picture of RORC racing evolving through youth, opportunity and diversity.
For more information about joining or supporting the RORC Griffin Pathway: rorc.org/griffinoffshorepathway
RORC Race Officer Chris Jackson, who was in Harwich for the start and Scheveningen for the finish commented on what mattered for a good performance for the North Sea Race.
"This edition of the North Sea Race had great conditions for the fleet with a very settled wind direction and speed, which suggests sail trim was crucial," commented Jackson.
"Except for the beat to Smith's Knoll, it has been reaching and downwind angles with lots of trimming all through the night, which is especially hard for the short-handed teams.
"The fleet managed to stay ahead of the lighter air behind them and stay in good pressure. They did their routing, they planned their tides, and they've taken their chances. A warm welcome, as always, was offered by the Royal Harwich Yacht Club and the Yacht Club Scheveningen put on a great prize-giving, rounding off a great edition of the North Sea Race. Congratulations to all of the class winners."
The 2026 RORC Season's Points Championship continues with the Myth of Malham Race, starting from Cowes on 23 May. The 230nm offshore race, starting from Cowes around the Eddystone Lighthouse with a Solent finish, is the second race of the RORC Cowes Offshore Series.
North Sea Race results