2026 ILCA 7 Men's World Championship at Dún Laoghaire, Ireland - Day 1
by Agustín Argüelles 25 Aug 20:22 BST
23-30 August 2026
2026 ILCA 7 Men's World Championship in Dublin Bay Day 1 © Jordan Roberts / Down Under Sail
Racing got underway today at the 2026 ILCA 7 Men’s World Championship in Dún Laoghaire, with the first three races of the qualifying series completed.
Racing started right on time, with the first warning signal going off at 12:00 as scheduled. A partly sunny day with 6–7 knots of wind and small waves set the tone for the first set of races. The breeze built to around 8 knots under cloudy skies for the second set, before rising further to 10–11 knots in the late afternoon for the final set, with waves building to around a metre and light rain moving in during the closing legs of the last fleets.
Results at the top were tightly bunched. Local sailor Finn Lynch IRL posted a solid 1-2-(4) in the blue fleet to head the overall standings, tied on 3 points with Attilio Borio ITA, who scored 2-1-(12) in the red fleet. Ole Schweckendiek GER sits third with (6)-3-1 in the blue fleet, tied on 4 points with Nicholas Halliday HKG, who scored 1-(4)-3 in the red fleet.
Tonci Stipanovic CRO, back in the class this year after retiring following Paris 2024, sits fifth on 5 points in the yellow fleet, level with Jeemin Ha KOR, also yellow fleet, and Jonatan Vadnai HUN, red fleet.
Among this year’s standout performers, Elliot Hanson GBR, with 6-(14)-1 in the yellow fleet, and reigning Olympic champion Matt Wearn AUS, with 5-(6)-2 in the blue fleet, hold eighth and ninth respectively on 7 points. Nik Aaron Willim GER, with (21)-4-3 in the blue fleet, rounds out the provisional top ten, also on 7 points.
Pavlos Kontides CYP, 11-1-(13) in the blue fleet, Duko Bos NED, 1-11-(17) in the yellow fleet, and Thomas Saunders NZL, (17)-12-1 in the red fleet, were among the sailors to win a race in their fleet today, sitting 17th to 19th overall respectively.
Racing continues tomorrow with 2 new races scheduled, with the first warning signal planned for 12:00.
The event is organised by the National Yacht Club and Royal St George Yacht Club, in conjunction with ILCA. It is supported by premium sponsors Sport Ireland and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, and associate sponsors Rooster, The Royal Marine Hotel, XOCEAN, and KPMG.
Find out more on the event website, 2026ilca7men.ilca-worlds.org