Dragon European Championship at Helsinki, Finland - Day 2
by Sofie Parikka 1 Jul 13:11 BST
26 June - 3 July 2026
Dragon Europeans at Helsinki, Finland Day 2 © Tuomas Koljonen
Bluebottle Dominates Race 3 as German Sapphire Storms Back to Win Race 3 on a Thrilling Day
Day two of the Dragon European Championship in Helsinki delivered two contrasting races in shifting conditions — and by the end of it, the leaderboard had been shaken up considerably.
With a forecast of 14 knots from the southwest and two races planned, the fleet headed out for a day of racing that rewarded quick thinking, flexible tactics, and the nerve to back a side of the course when the breeze had other ideas.
Race 2 followed something of a pattern from Sunday. The first start was aborted after the pin end became dangerously crowded — a testament to the quality and aggression of a fleet where even the finest margins are fiercely contested. At the restart, Britain's GBR192 Bluebottle got away cleanly alongside POR90 EASY and FIN99 Drak Queen skippered by Tusse Tallberg, with Bluebottle tacking early to take control of the beat. From there, Graham Bailey and his crew managed the race masterfully, holding off a determined challenge from Portugal's POR90 throughout. Turkey's TUR12 rounded out the podium in third while Sweden's SWE345 Ming was forced to retire early.
Race 3 was a different story entirely. A strong start by SUI313 FREE set the tone, and with the wind easing and shifting unexpectedly to the left — catching many in the fleet off guard — the race was thrown wide open. GBR192 Bluebottle suffered from a tactical miscalculation and dropped into the 30s, recovering to 20s further along. But it was Germany's GER1221 Sapphire, helmed by Jan Woortman, who recognised the left side's potential early and made the decisive move, leading at the second upwind mark and holding on to claim a well-deserved victory. Estonia's EST99 Shin Kan Sen crossed the finish line ahead of SUI313 by the narrowest of margins — surging on a final gust and easing the spinnaker just enough to edge out SUI313. The day was not without drama further back either: a significant collision between NED447 and GER1171 drew gasps at the downwind mark.
The best of the Finnish fleet on the day was FIN92, who recovered from a difficult start and a brush with the top mark to climb into the top five during Race 4, racing side by side with compatriots FIN101 Joyride and FIN104 Lady Bee, who had an excellent second race.
Portugal's Michael Zankel (POR90) was upbeat at the dock after back-to-back strong results. "Today was a really good day for us. In the first race we started well, so it was more straightforward — not that a good result is ever easy, but it was more simple. We had a good fight with Bluebottle until the end, they went really fast and we managed to stay more or less with them and finished second. The second race we started really badly and had to climb a lot. We had some luck — we went to the right and that paid off significantly, which helped us recover. We're really happy with the way things are going, and we love the place."
Germany's Jan Woortman (GER1221 Sapphire), the day's big mover after winning Race 4, was equally pleased. "We are really happy about this day and happy to be leading after today's races. In the morning there was a little more wind than we expected, and we thought the right side would pay and maybe offer less current. But the opposite turned out to be true — the left side had more pressure all day. We saw it quite early, and you always need a little luck when the side you have in your strategy turns out to be the right one. We like Helsinki a lot — the club, the island, the surroundings. I was here for the Gold Cup in 2018 and it's great to be back."
Racing continues tomorrow with further shifts in conditions expected. So far starts have been instrumental and one Dragon to watch at the startline will be Germany's SUI313 FREE, who have posted some of the best starts of the regatta so far — a product, according to their crew Pedro de Andrade, of relentless practice: logging around 150 race starts a year, with mastery of angle, timing, and distance to the line at the heart of their approach. The regatta is shaping up to be one of the closest in recent memory, with multiple boats capable of challenging for the overall title.
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