Unfortunately principally due to the unavailability of charter boats it is not viable to conduct the 2026 Oceania Masters Championships 18-26 September at Darwin Sailing Club (DSC).
ILCA NT and DSC will run a regatta at he same time in place of the Championship. This will not be an official ILCA Oceania event but all sailors are welcome to compete. https://www.revolutionise.com.au/ntlaser/home
This year the ILCA/Laser class will celebrate 30 years since making its Olympic debut at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games, a milestone that marked the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the class.
As part of the celebration, ILCA is seeking contributions from the ILCA community.
If you have memories, images or stories from Olympic ILCA/Laser sailing that you would like to share, please get in touch with Agustín Argüelles the new ILCA Global Communications and Media Manager at agustin@ilcasailing.org — Please include “ILCA 30 Years” in the subject line. Selected contributions may be featured during the campaign.
ILCA World Council has established a Finance and Governance Sub-committee (FGC) to provide oversight in key areas of finance, audit, governance, ethics and risk management.
The PGC will meet quarterly under ILCA President Mark Lyttle with newly appointed Treasurer Daniel Sexton. Nick Page who has done a fabulous job as ILCA Treasurer over many years will hand over this responsibility to Daniel over calendar 2026.
The working arrangements for this sub-committee and these key functions are covered in more detail in an ILCA web site post at https://ilcasailing.org/ilca-world-council-strengthens-finance-and-governance-support/
Early this year ILCA appointed Agustín Argüelles to a new position of Global Communications Manager. Agustin’s role will be to oversee class media, strengthen member communication, and coordinate the promotional activities of the class. This has assisted with the ILCA World Council’s increased focus on publicity and promotion.
The ILCA web site is the ILCA’s prime communication channel. It has all class information on news, rules, events entry and results. Some recent posts on major events on the site include.
The various social media and other channels featuring ILCA activities are. Check these out.
Harry Hogan in Action at 2026 ILCA 4 Oceania Youth Championhips
Congratulations to Harry Hogan (QLD) and Murray Duthie (WA) who have been selected based on their performance at the 2026 Oceania & Australian Youth Championship in Hobart to represent Oceania in the Asia-Oceania ILCA 4 Youth Rising Stars Exchange Program.
Harry and Murray will travel to Pattaya, Thailand where they will compete in the 6th ILCA Asian & Open Championships from 14 to 20 December 2026.
This new program is designed to strengthen international connections and create an exciting opportunity for top ILCA4 youth sailors by assisting two top Oceania sailors to sail in the peak Asia Championship and two top Asia sailors compete in our Oceania & Australian Youth Championships.
The 2026 Sailing Grand Slam (SGS) is the premier international circuit for elite Olympic sailing, windsurfing, and kiteboarding. Created in collaboration with World Sailing, the 2026 season comprises five major global regattas in the build-up to the LA 2028 Olympic Games.
The SGS web site consolidating entry links, information and results is https://www.sailinggrandslam.com/
The 16 Australian Sailors who are competing in the ILCA classes are.
ILCA 6 Elyse Ainsworth (AST), Mara Stransky (AST), Zoe Thomson (AST),Casey Imeneo (AS Squad), Evie Saunders (AS Squad), Ellen Sampson (ASF), Lili McAullay (ASF), Sylvie Stannage (AUS), Frances Beebe (AUS)
ILCA 7 Matt Wearn (AST), Ethan McAullay (AST), Zac Littlewood (AST), Michael Compton (AS Squad), Lawson McAullay (AS Squad), Isaac Schotte (AS Squad), Alexander Bijkerk (SSPP)
In the two events run so far Matt Wearn has dominated winning in La Palma and Hyeres in the ILCA 7s. In the ILCA 6s Mara Stransky, Zoe Thomson and Casey Imeneo have placed in or close to Medal Race places.
Trofeo Princesa Sofía results are Here and the Australian Sailing wrap of the event is Here.
French Olympic Week results are Here and the AS event wrap is Here.
The Asian and Oceania Regions of ILCA are pleased to announce a new partnership project the Asia-Oceania ILCA4 Youth Rising Stars Exchange Program designed to strengthen international connections and create an exciting opportunity for top ILCA4 youth sailors.
Initially the program will comprise.
Asia to Oceania
Two ILCA4 Under 18 Asian sailors will be selected on performance from ILCA Asian Cup 2026 Qinhuangdao, Hebei competing in the 2027 Oceania Open & Youth Championships in Melbourne, Australia 1-8 January.
Oceania to Asia
Two ILCA4 under 18 Oceania sailors selected based on performance at the 2026 Oceania & Australian Open & Youth Championships (Hobart) will be invited to compete in the 6th ILCA Asian & Open Championships 2026 in Pattaya, Thailand from 14 to 20 December.
Selected sailors will receive:
This program will provide a fantastic opportunity to experience international competition in a new environment and to build friendships across continents.
If too much ILCA Masters sailing is never enough we have the 2026 ILCA Oceania Masters Championships running 18-25 September at Darwin Sailing Club.
This is a fabulous venue and at a great time of year in NT. ILCA NT has run this event at the same time a few years ago and it was a great success. In 2026 they have included a parallel event for the all under 30 sailors so that local youth and sailing families can have everyone enjoying sailing in the tropics.
The Masters will be a regional cube award event.
Entries are open Here for Masters. and Here for the Under 30 Event.
The web site for NoR and information is https://www.revolutionise.com.au/ntlaser/home.
A limited number of charter boats will be available from PSA. Charter details will be posted on the Official Noticeboard.
ILCAVIC welcomes the support of volunteers from the Australian ILCA community to assist us deliver the Big regattas at Sandringham Yacht Club (SYC), Melbourne:
Potential volunteers can register their interest with ILCAVIC Event Chair James Mitchell 2027ilcainfo@gmail.com or via the SYC volunteers web portal here: Expression of Interest to Volunteer
Volunteers are needed to assist with on-water and off-water roles.
A commitment across the whole regatta period is not necessary (but welcomed).
ILCA Victoria looks forward to welcoming sailors from Australia and around the world for an exceptional summer of racing from Sandringham Yacht Club on Port Phillip Bay.
Major Championship Events – Hosted by ILCA Victoria:
2026 Performance Sailcraft ILCA Victorian State Championships 21–22 November 2026
2027 Performance Sailcraft ILCA Oceania & Australian Open & Youth Championships 1–8 January 2027
2027 Performance Sailcraft ILCA Under-21 World Championships 10–17 January 2027
Local and overseas sailors are encouraged to build a full Australian summer campaign by including regattas in multiple states:
2026 ILCA NSW & AXT State Championships November 2026 – Dates TBC – Sydney
2026 Sail Melbourne – 26–29 November 2026 – Brighton, Melbourne https://www.sailmelbourne.com.au/home/
2026 Sail Brisbane – 15–19 December 2026 – RQYS, Brisbane
Together, these events create a structured pathway of competition from November 2026 through January 2027, allowing sailors to maximise travel value and race days.
For further information please contact:
James Mitchell
Chair, ILCAVIC 26–27 Regatta Organising Committee
180 sailors from all mainland states and territories and some sailors from overseas enjoyed Australian Masters Championships at the fabulous regatta venue at Soldiers Point, Port Stephens. With beautiful clear water, good breezes, a traffic-free bay and lots of user-friendly rigging areas adjacent to accommodation what was not to like about the event.
The event was run for us by Newcastle Cruising Yacht Club who manage the Bay Sailing Centre and run major sailing events on Port Stephens. NCYC did a terrific job with 20 volunteers from Newcastle and tireless Sailing Manager Jack Buchan and Australian Sailing’s RO of the year Ken Semple calling the shots. Thanks to the NCYC and Bay Sailing Centre staff and volunteers for their efforts in delivering a great event.
On Sunday night 200 sailors and supporters enjoyed the event dinner at the Soldiers Point Bowling Club across the road from the Bay Sailing Centre. There Martin White hosted an Q & A session with Brett Beyer, Rob Lowndes, Lyndall Patterson and Christine Bridge who were Australian winners of World Masters categories at the 2025 World Masters in Italy. Australia won the ILCA trophy for most successful nation at the 2025 World Masters. The trophy is now on proud display at Middle Harbour Amateur Sailing Club.
The racing was held with three fleets ILCA 7, ILCA 6 Masters & GM, ILCA 6 Apprentices, GGMs and Legends each around 60 boats.
The first 2 days had solid afternoon sea breezes of 15 knots plus. Day 3 was lighter and saw delays due to shifting breeze and many general recalls. On Day 4 the fleets were APed ashore and just one light wind race was completed so seven of the eight scheduled races for the series with one drop.
There were 25 ILCA cubes awarded at this event and the first three placegetters in each category are listed below.
| Apprentices | Masters | GM | GGM | Legends | ILCA 4 | Women | |
| ILCA 7 1st | James Tudball | Christoph Bottoni | Brett Beyer | Michael Wilson | |||
| ILCA 7 2nd | John Sweeny | Tom Lowndes | Jan Scholten | Nick Page | |||
| ILCA 7 3rd | Jack Sprague | David Newman | David Whait | Rob Sykes | |||
| ILCA 6 1st | Simon Merritt | Jon Emmett | Bruce Savage | Michael O’Brien | Peter Heywood | Christine Bridge | |
| ILCA6 2nd | Bradley Utting | Rupert Henry | Owen McMahon | Colin Beashel | Tim Alexander | Jenny Danks | |
| ILCA 6 3rd | Vaimooia Ripley | Scott Hunter | Brad Jones | Anthony Scali | Kerry Waraker | Kerrie Shimeld | |
| ILCA 4 1st | Jacqui Winship | ||||||
| ILCA 4 2nd | Lyn Savage | ||||||
| ILCA 4 3rd | Ross Bell |
The full results are Here.
ILCA Victoria Masters States are on the 21st & 22nd of February at Mordialloc Sailing Club.
Mordialloc is towards the top of Port Phillip Bay, and they expect to have typical Port Phillip sea breeze conditions with warm sunny weather.
Details available on the Mordialloc web site Here. You can enter Here.
ILCA has announced the upcoming launch of a redesigned ILCA 4 sail.
The new ILCA 4 MkII sail was developed to improve cloth supply and improve durability without changing the ILCA 4 rig or compromising the ILCA one-design principle. For many years, the ILCA 4 sail has depended on a 3.8 oz sailcloth that is no longer produced at scale. The ILCA 6 also uses the same 3.8 oz material, and so work has commenced on the development of a future ILCA 6 MkII sail as well.
The new ILCA 4 sail will be available in limited supply from April 2026 and will be class legal from August 2026 in time for our events next season. The existing ILCA 6 sail will continue to be used through to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games with the new model to be released afterwards.
There is more information in the ILCA post Here.
There are 170 entries so far for the 2026 Australian Masters Championships 6-9 February 2026 at Bay Sailing Centre Soldiers Point, Port Stephens NSW. Entries are still open Here.
This is our favourite Masters venue. It offers great open sailing conditions, easy access on and off the water and ample accommodation in the Port Stephens area.
There are three current World Masters Champions competing so expect some high level competition. The Entry List is Here.
This is the Australian ranking event for the 2026 ILCA World Masters 30 May – 16 June Athens, Greece.
The Notice of Race is Here.
The Sailing Instructions are Here.
Event web site with links to documents, results is Here.
Brett Beyer and Christine Bridge Current GM Australian and World Champions
Healy Ryan 225359 in the Chase on Day One in Lanzarote – Photo by Jesus Renedo
The 2026 ILCA Under 21 World Championships were run 19-24 January at Playa Blanca, Lanzarote, in the Canary Islands, Spain.
The scheduled 12 races were competed in sometimes testing Atlantic Ocean conditions.
In the event there were three fleets with 148 sailors — comprising 96 ILCA 7 men and 52 ILCA 6 women from all seven ILCA regions around the world. Four Australians Nicholas Jones Tas, Hamish Gilsenan Vic, Healy Ryan U19 NSW and Hamish Crabb U19 NSW competed.
The three winners Men’s U21 and U19 and Women’s U21 were all won by Italian sailors the Men’s U21 in a very close contest which went down to the final day when any of the top five could have won. Healy Ryan was 10th and Hamish Gilsenan finished 12th in the U19.
Youtube
Event web site
Daily reports are on ILCA web site
The 2027 ILCA U21 Worlds will be held in Australia at Sandringham Vic 10-17 January.
The 2026 Oceania & Australian Open & Youth Championships were very successfully run at the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania with racing 3-8 January.
There were over 190 boats competing in the three classes with sailors from all Australian states and from 11 other countries. This was the largest ILCA/Laser Championship ever run in Tasmania and the largest Nationals of any class in Australia this season.
The ILCA 4 and ILCA 6 classes were sailed in two fleets using qualifying and finals series format. The largest class with 77 boats was the fast growing ILCA 4 which sailed on its own course area. Again this year there were more girls than boys in the ILCA 4. The two ILCA 6 and one ILCA 7 fleets sailed in the second course area.
The sailing conditions for the event varied from light and variable to moderate sea breeze with some full on breeze races thrown in for good measure. PRO Colin Dods and the two CROs managed to complete all 12 races two per day as scheduled though one day was a super long one allowed by the sunset in Hobart being at 2100. There is a perspective on the event by ILCA 6 sailor Charlie Byford Here which details the variable conditions experienced in the event.
As always the racing was close and competitive especially in the ILCA 4 class where the quality and skill exhibited by the young sailors was exceptional. In the LCA 4s Thomas Cooper WA RFBYC/FSC and Callum Simmons Vic SSCBC/IHYC went head to head. By winning the last race Thomas took first place on a countback. Thomas was also first U18. Callum was also runner up in this event in 2025 in Queensland. Third was RQYS sailor Harry “Houdini” Hogan. First female also from RQYS was Ruby Carter. First U16 was Seth Till FSC/SoPYC WA.
In the ILCA 6 the women filled nine of the top ten places with the two Olympians Emma Plasschaert from Belgium and Hungarian Maria Erdi going head to head finishing in that order. Third placed and first Australian was Paris Olympian sailor Zoe Thomson RFBYC from WA. 5th placed Jasper Stay also from RFBYC was the first male and the first U19. First U17 was Jackson Black from RQYS.
Recently returned to competitive ILCA sailing Matt Wearn RPYC showed he has lost none of his form. He was dominant in the ILCA 7s winning six races and winning without needing to sail in the final race. Fellow WA sailors Zac Littlewood RFBYC and Ethan McAullay RPYC filled the other podium places with Zac winning three races. First U19 was Australia’s World Sailing World Youth Championship sailor Healy Ryan DBSC NSW. First U21 was New Zealander Zach Stibbe OYC.
The full results for the event are Here.
It must be something in the water in WA as five of the top ten ILCA 7 places were filled by WA sailors and they comfortably won the Battens Trophy for the best performing state over all classes at the Nationals.
A very large team of volunteers worked under the able direction of ILCA Tasmania President Ed Fader to make this event run smoothly. Congratulations to ILCA Tasmania and RYCT for running this event for us and thanks to the 14 sponsors for making it all possible.
The 2027 event will be held at Sandringham YC Vic 1-8 January 2027 which will be followed at the same club by the ILCA U21 World Championship 10-17 January.
