Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

On Monday, as the international squads arrived at Ballyholme Yacht Club on Belfast Lough in Northern Ireland, the IODAI Development Squad - who are the newest sailors in the Main Fleet - took to the water with Head Coach Adam…

Howth Yacht Club's Harry Dunne has a four-point margin at the top of the Optimist Irish National Championships at Ballyholme Yacht Club on Belfast Lough. Gemma Brady of the National Yacht Club and Lough Derg lies second on ten, with Charlotte Crosbie from…

On Thursday, 116 young sailors participated in the Optimist Optimist Irish and Open National Championships, competing in Junior, Senior, and Regatta fleets at Ballyholme Yacht Club on Belfast Lough. Despite challenging weather conditions, with the wind gradually increasing throughout the…

It’s been several years since the Optimist dinghy fleet has participated in team racing, and this year the association undertook to re-introduce the format into the fleet. With the National Championships happening later in the week in Ballyholme Yacht Club…

Weymouth, the site of the 2012 Olympic games, played host to the British Optimist Nationals 2023, a major sailing event that saw 267 competitors from across the globe gather to race. The sailors hailed from countries such as the USA,…

The Irish Optimist Dinghy Association (IODAI) IDT Team is the International Development team which is aimed at sailors just below the World and European level, writes Brendan Foley of the IODAI The team is aimed at preparing sailors for international competitions in…

The European Optimist Championship took place in Thessaloniki, Greece, last week and was represented by the Irish team; Abigail Murphy (Royal St George Yacht Club) Maeve Donagh (Royal St George Yacht Club / Lough Derg Yacht Club), Carolina Carra (Royal…

In line with the Irish Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland (IODAI) push to have a fun and inclusive fleet, a Team Racing Optimist Nationals will be held on the 16th of August, the day before the Fleet Racing Nationals starts…

RYA Northern Ireland has issued the Notice of Race and opened entries for the 2023 edition of the RYANI F10 Marine Youth Championships, which will take place on the weekend of 9-10 September. Following the cancellation of last year’s championships…

The 2023 Optimist World Championships from 16-24 June were and extra-special occasion this year as IODA is celebrating its 50th year, writes Fionnuala Start. The location in L’Escala on the Costa Brava in Spain was ideal with sunny weather throughout…

The beautiful seaside village of Dunmore East in Waterford was the setting for the Optimist Munster championship. Nicola Harris and her very able team of volunteers from Waterford Harbour Sailing Club ensured that 120 sailors and parents alike had a…

East Antrim Boat Club in Larne were the host of the Optimist Ulster Championships last weekend. 75 sailors and their families were warmly welcomed by Jill Doig and Gordon Kane, event manager and their team of volunteers. The event was…

Spare a thought for PRO Michael Tyrell and his team, who had to wait until Sunday afternoon to deliver three races so that the Optimist Leinster could have a championship, writes Brendan Foley of the IODAI. After waiting in vain for…

Lough Ree Yacht Club were host to the fun, friendships and team-building experience by the Irish Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland (IODAI) Development Squad and the U12 team last weekend when the teams came together for the first time to…

2023 got off to an 'optimistic' start at the Youth Nationals at Easter. Much has already been written about the Howth Yacht Club event last weekend, and the largest fleet with the youngest sailors that saw Optimists produce some thrilling racing over…

The concluding day's one extra race at the Investwise Youth Sailing National Championships at Howth Yacht Club, slotted in between the morning's sunlit near-calm and the mid-afternoons varying attempts at fog, provided some key classes with an additional discard to…