Fireball World Championship 2026 - Runners and Riders
by UK Fireball Association 15 Jul 16:05 BST
20-31 July 2026
Fireballs racing at Royal Torbay YC © Tania Hutchings /
www.50northphotography.co.uk
Across Britain, Fireball sailors are beginning to point their cars towards Devon for the Fireball Worlds that start next week. The roads into Torbay are already filling with trailers, roof racks, and people demonstrating that reversing a trailer is, in fact, one of the least developed human skills.
As always, the 85 boat entry list reads like a Fireball greatest hits album.
Tom Gillard and Andy Thompson are back, largely because every championship needs someone for the rest of us to blame for being too quick. Will it be speed or will it be the revival of the spinnaker chute and the complications of twin poles. Personally I can't wait to hear screaming coming from Gilly as Shandy, (sitting, sulking saying words that are completely incomprehensible) has made more knots than a knitting needle makes in a lifetime.
They're expected to feature prominently at the front, mostly because AI race reports automatically insert their names before the first gun. If they don't win something, people will assume there's a scoring error.
Close behind are DJ Edwards and the seemingly ageless Vyv Townend. Between them they've forgotten more about Fireballs than most of the fleet will ever know. They haven't lifted a major Fireball title for a few years now, but writing them off would be a brave move. Vyv has been sailing Fireballs for so long that some of the younger competitors genuinely think Peter Milne designed the boat around him. The Fireball records get a little hazy once you go back that far.
Peter Gray and Rich Pepperdine return armed with enough data to launch a satellite. Peter can analyse a sail shape, a rig setting or your tactical mistakes with equal enthusiasm, often before you've even realised you've made them. If you accidentally beat him in one race, expect a forty-minute debrief explaining why you didn't.
Vince Horey is already in championship form, but unfortunately in every other class of boat except a Fireball, as his new boat is untried and untested and probably hasn't even arrived yet. By Wednesday evening he'll have won several legendary races that bear only a passing resemblance to events anyone else actually remembers. Every retelling gains another wind force, another place recovered and another spectacular overtaking manoeuvre.
Georgia Booth and Oliver Davenport arrive representing youth, fitness and knees that still work properly. Their reward will be twenty-seven different sailors telling them how to sail a Fireball, all beginning with the reassuring phrase, "What you need to do is..."
Dave Wade and Iain Blake remain living proof that experience counts for a great deal. Mostly because it has to. Dave's body now makes noises normally associated with old timber-framed houses, while Iain occasionally needs reminding which side of the boat to sit on after a gybe. Between them they've forgotten more about Fireballs than most people ever knew.
Paul Cullen and Simon "Little Legs" Forbes have spent the year trialling enough new spars and sails to keep several chandlers comfortably in business. The trauma of Garda clearly still lingers. Every new mast has apparently been "the fast one". If the latest setup isn't the answer, they'll probably order another one before they've reached the slipway.
Malcolm Davis and Russell Thorne have reunited with "Reginald", a boat held together by history, hope and elastic that was already old when Britpop was fashionable. Every control line has spent thirty years slowly turning into liquorice. Nobody knows whether the rig will survive, but everyone wants to see it try.
Kevin Hope and Andrew Stewart arrive after a cracking season and are sailing faster than ever. Kevin remains overwhelming favourite for the "More Beer" Trophy, despite fierce competition. He possesses an extraordinary ability to locate the nearest pint within seconds of stepping ashore. If there were points awarded for first customer at the bar, the championship would already be over.
Dave Winder and Ben Rayner return with one clear objective: keep the mast attached to the boat. The fleet sweepstake isn't about who'll win the Worlds; it's about what day their mast explodes. Current odds have "during measurement" narrowly ahead of "halfway down the M5". If it survives until Friday afternoon it deserves its own trophy.
The overseas invasion has also begun.
Heather and Chris Payne have travelled all the way from Australia, proving that no journey is too far in search of Fireball glory. Or perhaps they've simply worked out that British sailors are much easier to beat after three nights in the bar.
Fellow Australian, Ben Schulz, appears on the entry list as a single-hander. Whether this is supreme confidence, an administrative error or evidence that he'd rather race alone than listen to another crew discussing mast rake remains unclear.
Russell Doherty and Tim Edlund are travelling from the USA talking a big game. Rumour has it they're unbelievably quick, but talking is always easier than proving it. Just remember, if things don't go their way they can always put in a call to "The Donald"....if he can reverse a red a card with FIFA, surely a quick call to World Sailing should ensure his compatriots get pencilled in at the top of the leader board.
About the event
The event is being hosted by Royal Torbay Yacht Club and is preceded by the UK Nationals. The Nationals run from Monday 20th to Friday 24th July (including inspection/measurement days) and the Worlds from Saturday 25th to Friday 31st July (including inspection/measurement days).
More information can found at: 2026.fireballworlds.com
A big thank you to our valued sponsors: Weathermark Sailboats, Allen Brothers, P&B, Winder Boats, PRO-SET, St Austell Brewery, English Riviera, Robline, Tor Bay Harbour, North Sails, NAVA Performance, Optimum Time, Wetsuit Outlet, Selden.