What is the date and time of the 2020 Round Ireland Yacht Race?

August 22nd. Starting times: Monohulls 1300 hrs and Multihulls 13.10 hrs.

What is the Round Ireland Yacht Race distance?

Approximately 704 nautical miles or 1304 kilometres

Ten Boats Retire from Round Ireland Race So Far

Q: What is the Round Ireland Race speed record?

The Round Ireland race record of 38 h 37 min 7s is held by MOD-70 trimaran Musandam-Oman Sail and was set in June 2016.

Ten Boats Retire from Round Ireland Race So Far

27th June 2024

Afloat.ie Team

The United States S & S Hiro Maru, skippered by Hiroshi Nakajima, finished its Round Ireland race in Cork Harbour, one of ten boats so far to retire from the 2024 Round Ireland Race Credit: Afloat

Twenty per cent of the fleet has retired from the SSE Renewables Round Ireland Race so far, with some high-profile withdrawals as the remaining 38 monohulls negotiate the final stages of the 700-mile offshore race.

As Afloat reported earlier on day five (Thursday) of the race, the squally southwesterly wind has brought the main race fleet through the North Channel.

"Thankfully, the majority of the fleet will be ahead of the expected gale force winds, and those still off the north-west coast will have the wind and seas following them, so it should be manageable," commented Kyran O'Grady, Race Director at Wicklow Sailing Club.

As Afloat previously reported, the first to retire was Finnbarr O'Regan's Kinsale J109 Artful Dodjer due to mast damage last Saturday at the start of the race.

Finbarr O Regan's J 109 Artful Dodjer (IRL1713) Photo: Bob Bateman

Shortly afterwards, James Neville's Ino Noir from London retired after hitting a Wexford sandbank. It is the second retiral for the former RORC Commodore from the Round Ireland. Neville experienced hull delamination off the Kerry coast in 2022 in his previous boat Ino XXX.

James Neville's Carkeek 45 Ino Noir (GBR2747R) Photo: Afloat

The United States S & S Hiro Maru, skippered by Hiroshi Nakajima, (pictured top) finished its Round Ireland race in Cork Harbour.

Derek Dillon's Shannon Estuary-based Grand Soleil 37 Big Deal (IRL1716) Photo: Afloat

Derek Dillon's two-hander, the Grand Soleil 37 B&C Big Deal, retired into his home port of Foynes on the Shannon Estuary.

Richie Fearon and Andrew Baker's Belfast Lough JPK 10.30 Coquine Photo: Afloat

Richard Elliott's Sun Fast 3300 Bug, Richie Fearon and Andrew Baker's JPK 10.30 Coquine, current ISORA leaders, are in Galway. Amanda Mochrie's Sun Fast 3300 Lord of the Dance also headed for the Galway Port.

Richard Elliott's Sun Fast 3300 Bug (GBR4849R) Photo: Afloat

Robert Floate's Tan It, the Isle of Man Sydney 36 retired into Donegal.

Tan It, the Isle of Man Sydney 36 (GBR731t) skippered by Robert Floate Photo: Afloat Tanit, the Isle of Man Sydney 36 (GBR731T) skippered by Robert Floate Photo: Afloat

Stevie Goddard's Welsh, First 36 Faenol retired into Lough Foyle.

Simon Harris's J 112 E J'ouvert (GBR112N) United Kingdom Photo: Afloat

Simon Harris's UK J 112 E J'ouvert retired on the North Coast.

Also out of the year's 22nd race are ISORA regular and a successful Round Britain and Ireland contestant, the First 40.7 Polished Manx 2 skippered by Kuba Szymanski.

Polished Manx 2, the Isle of Man First 40.7 skippered by Kuba Szymanski Photo: Afloat

Published in Round Ireland

Round Ireland Yacht Race Live Tracker 2024

Track the progress of the 2024 Wicklow Sailing Club Round Ireland Race fleet on the live tracker above and see all Afloat's Round Ireland Race coverage in one handy link here

Published in Round Ireland

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Round Ireland Race

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Round Ireland Yacht Race Information

The Round Ireland Yacht Race is Ireland's classic offshore yacht race starts from Wicklow Sailing Club (WSC) and is organised jointly with the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) and the Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC). This page details the very latest updates from the 2008 race onwards including the race schedule, yacht entries and the all-important race updates from around the 704-mile course. Keep up to date with the Round Ireland Yacht Race here on this one handy reference page.

2020 Round Ireland Race

The 2020 race, the 21st edition, was the first race to be rescheduled then cancelled.

Following Government restrictions over COVID-19, a decision on the whether or not the 2020 race can be held was made on April 9 2020 to reschedule the race to Saturday, August 22nd. On July 27th, the race was regrettably cancelled due to ongoing concerns about COVID-19.

Because of COVID-19, the race had to have a virtual launch party at the Royal Irish Yacht Club for its 21st edition.

In spite of the pandemic, however, a record entry was in prospect for 2020 with 50 boats entered with four weeks to go to the race start. The race was also going big on size and variety to make good on a pre-race prediction that the fleet could reach 60. An Irish offshore selection trial also looked set to be a component part of the 2020 race.

The rescheduling of the race to a news date emphasises the race's national significance, according to Afloat here

FAQs

How many miles duration is the Round Ireland Yacht Race?

704 nautical miles, 810 miles or 1304 kilometres

What is the distance around Ireland's coastline?

3171 kilometres is the estimate of Ireland's coastline by the Ordnance Survey of Ireland.

Who is the sponsor of the 2020 Round Ireland Yacht Race?

SSE Renewables are the sponsors of the 2020 Round Ireland Race.

Who organises the Round Ireland Yacht Race?

Wicklow Sailing Club in association with the Royal Ocean Racing Club in London and The Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dublin.

Where is the Round Ireland Race Start?

Off Wicklow Harbour on Saturday, August 22nd 2020

What is the Round Ireland Race Start time?

Monohulls 1300 hrs and Multihulls 13.10 hrs

What is the Round Ireland Race course?

Leave Ireland and all its islands (excluding Rockall) to starboard.

How long does it take to sail Round Ireland?

It depends on the boat. The elapsed record time for the race is under 40 hours but most boats take five or six days to complete the course.

Is there a Round Ireland Race Tracker?

The Race Tracker is https://afloat.ie/sail/events/round-ireland/item/25789-round-ireland-yacht-race-tracker-2016-here.

What is the history of the Round Ireland Race?

The idea of a race around Ireland began in 1975 with a double-handed race starting and finishing in Bangor organised by Ballyholme Yacht Club with stopovers in Crosshaven and Killybegs. That race only had four entries. In 1980 Michael Jones put forward the idea of a non-stop race and was held in that year from Wicklow Sailing Club. Sixteen pioneers entered that race with Brian Coad’s Raasay of Melfort returning home after six days at sea to win the inaugural race. Read the first Round Ireland Yacht Race 1980 Sailing Instructions here

What is the Round Ireland Race speed record?

The Round Ireland race record of 38 h 37 min 7 s is held by MOD-70 trimaran Musandam-Oman Sail and was set in June 2016.

What is the Round Ireland Race Monohull Speed record?

George David’s Rambler 88 (USA) holds the fastest monohull race time of two days two hours 24 minutes and 9 seconds set in the 2016 race.

What was the first round Ireland voyage?

William Power's 45ft Olivia undertook a round Ireland cruise in September 1860

What is the Smallest Boat To Sail Round Ireland?

Richard Hayes completed his solo epic round Ireland voyage in September 2018 in a 14-foot Laser dinghy. The voyage had seen him log a total of 1,324 sea miles (2,452 kilometres) in 54 sailing days. in 1961, the Belfast Lough Waverly Durward crewed by Kevin and Colm MacLaverty and Mick Clarke went around Ireland in three-and-a-half weeks becoming the smallest keelboat ever to go round. While neither of these achievements occurred as part of the race they are part of Round Ireland sailing history