Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
Mystic Meg Keeps Crystal Ball Covered Before Saturday's Round Ireland Start
17th June 2026 Round Ireland
With Saturday's Round Ireland Yacht Race fast approaching, Mystic Meg is keeping her crystal ball unusually well covered. The popular Afloat.ie forecasting exercise has become a fixture of Round Ireland build-up, offering a light-hearted assessment of the likely contenders. But…
Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has announced funding for projects in seven counties to help restore salmon and trout stocks and their habitats. IFI’s Habitats and Conservation Scheme 2026 has awarded €728,909 for 16 innovative environmental projects. The competitive scheme, administered…
Mark Lyttle has become a two-time ILCA Grand Masters World Champion after the National Yacht Club sailor secured victory at the 2026 ILCA 7 Masters World Championship in Athens. The Dún Laoghaire sailor and World ILCA President added the Greek title to…
Fleet Set for Offshore Showdown at Loro Piana Giraglia, Searcher 2 Lying 12th
16th June 2026 Offshore
The 73rd Loro Piana Giraglia inshore series concluded in Saint-Tropez on Tuesday, setting the stage for the regatta's headline offshore race to Genoa. A fleet of 145 boats completed the final day of coastal racing in light north-easterly winds on…
Lough Derg Lifeboat Launches to Help Five on Cruiser With Engine Failure
16th June 2026 RNLI Lifeboats
Lough Derg RNLI launched on Tuesday afternoon (16 June) to assist five people on a 32ft motor cruiser with engine failure and at anchor north of Illaunmore. At the request of Valentia Coast Guard, Lough Derg RNLI’s inshore lifeboat Jean…
The fleet for the 2026 Rolex Middle Sea Race is continuing to grow, with entries arriving from across Europe and the Americas four months before the start. The 47th edition of the 606-nautical-mile offshore classic starts from Valletta's Grand Harbour…
Kilmore Quay Lifeboat Launches to Assist Five on Motorboat Adrift in Fog
16th June 2026 RNLI Lifeboats
Kilmore Quay RNLI launched Monday afternoon (15 June) to assist the crew of an eight-metre motorboat with engine failure adrift in fog near the Saltee Islands. The volunteer crew were requested to launch their all-weather Tamar class lifeboat Killarney by…
The 100th Bacardi Cup has made an early statement, with 140 teams registering within the first 24 hours of entries opening. The centenary edition of the historic regatta will take place on Biscayne Bay in Miami from 7 to 13…
Irish sailor Charles Cullen recorded a top-five finish at the 2026 International Moth European Championship in L’Escala, Spain. The Royal St George Yacht Club and National Yacht Club sailor ended the week-long regatta fifth overall in a highly competitive international…
Promoted
North Sails has launched a campaign encouraging sailors to seek personalised sail solutions tailored to their boats and sailing ambitions. The sailmaker is offering custom quotations backed by expert advice, with recommendations tailored to boat specifications, sailing style, and performance…
Community groups from across Kerry will come together for a pollinator festival focused on building resilience through nature-based action. This year's festival theme is "Developing community resilience with the help of our pollinators". Transition Kerry will host an interactive discussion…
Irish Fish Producers Organisation Urges Ireland to Seek Iceland-Style CFP Exemptions
16th June 2026 Fishing
The Irish Fish Producers Organisation (IFPO) has called on the Government to seek exemptions from the EU's Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) if similar concessions are granted to Iceland. The organisation's intervention follows reports that Iceland could secure permanent fisheries exemptions…
Ballyholme Yacht Club's McNicholl and Swanston claimed the Irish Multihull Association Eastern Championships title after a closely fought weekend at Swords Sailing and Boating Club. The championship, held on 13 and 14 June, attracted competitors from Galway Bay Sailing Club,…
Italian skipper Ambrogio Beccaria produced a remarkable comeback to win the 2026 Vendée Arctique – Les Sables d'Olonne. The skipper of Allagrande Mapei crossed the finish line at 03:07 local time on Tuesday, 16 June, after 8 days, 14 hours,…
ORC Ireland says it has now issued certificates to 133 individual boats across 17 Irish sailing clubs, according to the latest figures released by the organisation. The figures show certificated boats distributed around the country, with the strongest concentrations in…
Trust in news in Ireland has fallen significantly over the past year, according to the Digital News Report Ireland 2026 published by Coimisiún na Meán. The annual study shows that 42% of Irish people say they trust most news most…
The 73rd Loro Piana Giraglia enjoyed near-perfect sailing conditions on Monday as a steady north-easterly breeze delivered fast and competitive racing off Saint-Tropez. Cloudy skies gave way to sunshine shortly before racing began, with a 14-knot breeze filling the Gulf…
Dun Laoghaire Harbour's Mark Lyttle, the ILCA Class World President, goes into the final day of the 2026 ILCA 7 Masters World Championship in Athens with a slender but significant lead in the Grand Masters fleet, built not on race…
Ballycotton RNLI brought four people safely to shore after a late-night rescue operation involving a motorboat with engine trouble 29 miles south of Ballycotton. The alarm was raised at 10.12 pm on Sunday, 14 June, when Valentia Coast Guard received…
The largest fleet in the history of the Rolex TP52 World Championship is set to compete off Porto Cervo as racing gets underway on Tuesday. A total of 15 TP52 yachts representing 11 nations will contest the 2026 world title…
