Dún Laoghaire and Dublin Bay won praise from international sailors and coaches during the ILCA Men’s World Championships, with visiting teams highlighting the varied sailing conditions, strong organisation and extensive volunteer support at the Irish venue.
The championship brought 141 sailors from 45 nations to Dublin Bay, with the National Yacht Club and Royal St George Yacht Club hosting a week of international competition that ultimately saw Hungary's Jonatán Vadnai crowned world champion and Ireland's Finn Lynch finish eighth overall.
Away from the results, the championship also provided an opportunity to hear how some of the visiting sailors and coaches rated Dún Laoghaire as an international sailing venue.
Afloat spoke to competitors from Italy, Canada and the United States, as well as German team coach Alexander Schlonski, before racing began.
Weather was a “little cold” and conditions were fickle and challenging in Dublin Bay, but visiting sailors at the ILCA Men’s World Championships in Dun Laoghaire seemed very happy with the venue.
Speaking after a week of training and before racing began, members of the Italian team did feel the distance from the Laser boat park on the Carlisle pier to the respective slipways at the Royal St George and National Yacht Clubs was “a bit of a hike”.
Dublin Bay Smiles: Italian sailor Matteo Bertacchi, who led the Silver Fleet and finished 48th overall at the ILCA 7 Men’s World Championship, praised Dún Laoghaire despite finding Dublin Bay conditions “cold and shifty”. Photo: Afloat
However, that was their only issue during the training week.
“Cold and shifty” was how Italian team member Matteo Bertacchi, who led the silver fleet and was 48th overall in final results, said.
Asked how Dun Laoghaire compared as a venue to other places they had raced in, such as Hyères in France, Palma in Mallorca, Portugal and China, Bertacchi and team colleague Attilio Borio said it compared well though it was “a bit smaller”.
The team of eight had left temperatures of 30 degrees Celsius in Italy, and had to wrap up while out on the water, but otherwise they were satisfied with conditions during training.
They had visited Dublin city centre during a day off, and were struck by how people were “very kind” and would greet you with a “big smile”, Bertacchi noted.
Canadian sailors Jacob Townsend and Reilly Nakatsu and US competitor Devon Owen found conditions in Dublin Bay “pretty great”.
Bay Approval: US sailor Devon Owen was among the international competitors who praised Dublin Bay’s varied conditions, saying the changing wind, swell and strength “keeps it interesting” and “keeps it fun”. Photo: Afloat
“The current is definitely something that is new for us…but we were here last year for the ILCA Under-21st,”they said.
“So it’s not our first rodeo here, so we’re used to the town, used to the wind, used to the currents..”
Accommodation had proved difficult, and they found it “quite hard” but secured a place which was a ten minute walk from the harbour.
They had no issue with the boat park on the Carlisle pier, were generally very satisfied, but did say “more sunny days would be nice”.
They were struck by the number of volunteers, and the fact that at last year’s Under-21s they were handed hot pasta meals coming off the water.
“After eight hours in the cold and the rain, it was quite nice…”
The Canadian and US trio liked the fact that Dublin Bay conditions were “different every day”.
“It keeps it interesting – different wind directions, different swell, different strength…it keeps it fun for sure”.
Thumbs Up: Canadian sailor Jacob Townsend praised Dublin Bay’s varied conditions and the Dún Laoghaire welcome, while noting that tides and currents added another tactical dimension to the ILCA Worlds. Photo: Afloat
To be a good Laser sailor, you have to be “a very fit athlete, and a good chess player almost…”, they noted.
It’s “all about tactics”, they said, as one has to “see how the wind moves, judge the tides” and be aware of how one can be “pushed in different directions”, depending on position on the course.
The role of coaches was key, they said, and “there’s a lot in our heads, for sure…”
German team coach Alexander Schlonski said that the Dublin Bay conditions were akin to sailing on a lake.
“If the wind is coming from the east, south-east, it’s more open sea, and quite constant, but if it is coming from the shore then it’s lake sailing with currents..”
Schlonski was very impressed with the number of volunteers available to help the sailors with launching from the two clubs, and with the organisation generally, including the condition of the boats and measuring.
Coach’s View: German team coach Alexander Schlonski praised Dún Laoghaire’s organisation and volunteer support, describing Dublin Bay as a mix of open-water conditions and “lake sailing with currents”. Photo: Afloat
Accommodation was challenging, and the team began looking six months ago, Schlonski said. He noted it was also “a bit expensive” but it is “quite often” the case “in big cities like this..”
He had secured somewhere to stay close by, but said he knew of competitors who were coming from Air bnbs which were at least 20 minutes away by car.
Schlonski noted that next year’s ILCA world championships is set for Fortaleza in Brazil where there is a hotel right next to the bay area.
On the other hand, a team hotel on a waterfront area like this could be in a location where security was an issue, he said, and this was definitely not the case in Dun Laoghaire.
Of all the venues, Palma in Mallorca was probably the easiest as hotels were not difficult to find, he added.
Schlonski has fond memories of Ireland, having competed in the Star European Championships himself in Dun Laoghaire in 2011.
Listen: International Sailors on Dublin Bay
Hear the voices of international sailors and coaches as they tell Afloat about racing on Dublin Bay, the conditions they encountered and their experience of Dún Laoghaire during the ILCA Men's World Championships.
