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

Round Ireland 26: Becalmed at Blaskets, Speeding To Slyne

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.

Round Ireland 26: Becalmed at Blaskets, Speeding To Slyne

22nd June 2026

WM Nixon

Light Fantastic — Off the coast of Kerry. In conditions like this, a cruising yacht would have long since resorted to auxiliary engine, but in the Class40 #Empowher, Pamela Lee of Greystones demonstrates that there’s wind power to be harvested - if you know how - as you make on your way in the Round Ireland Race 2026

Monday 14:30hrs – The strategic essence of the Round Ireland Race for a speedy high-rated boat like Guy Gillon’s Botin 56 Khumbu is to get yourself far enough ahead to be nibbling at a different weather system from the rest of the fleet, a system that with any luck will soon have you lengthening away in a private breeze.

This Monday afternoon, with the bulk of the more competitive part of the fleet hung up in light airs or no wind at all at the Blaskets, Khumbu is away to the north, finally 25 miles clear of the next in line, (it’s the nearest Class40, VSF Sports), with the 400 miles to the finish barrier breached, and 9 knots and better on the clock while heading in the right direction up past Slyne head in Connemara

Breaking Free — Guy Gillon's Botin 56 Khumbu powers upwind shortly after the start of the 2026 Round Ireland Yacht Race off Wicklow. By Monday afternoon, the line honours leader had finally broken clear of the fleet, opening a 25-mile advantage and finding stronger breeze north of the Blaskets as she charged towards Slyne Head. Photo: Afloat

They’re out in open water with no distractions from the total purpose of making the boat go a fast as possible. But back at the brooding Blaskets, the under-powered opposition find themselves struggling to maintain control in a steep archipelago where you’d expect a fire-breathing dragon to launch itself at any moment with malicious intent from the nearest saw-toothed misty peak.

Blasket Leader — Johnny and Suzie Murphy's J/109 Outrajeous shortly after the start of the 2026 Round Ireland Yacht Race off Wicklow. Despite becoming embroiled in the light airs southwest of the Blasket Islands on Monday, the Howth Yacht Club campaign continued to lead IRC overall. Photo: Afloat

At the moment, Johnny Murphy’s J/109 Outrajeous – currently crawling along close southwest of the Blaskets - continues to hold the overall IRC lead from Lionnir Girl in second and Bellino in third. But in terms of these placings the private speed of Khumbu (currently shown as 33^rd) is creating a new dynamic, even if the lowest rated Cavatina is currently basking in 11^th place on corrected time

Irish Pursuit — Loinnir Girl shortly after the start of the 2026 Round Ireland Yacht Race off Wicklow. By Monday afternoon, the JPK 10.30 had climbed to second overall on IRC corrected time as much of the fleet struggled through the light-air trap around the Blasket Islands. Photo: Bob Bateman

Two-Handed Charge — Rob Craigie and RORC Commodore Beth Fish's Sun Fast 3600 Bellino in the early stages of the 2026 Round Ireland Yacht Race. The experienced double-handed crew lay third overall on IRC corrected time on Monday as the fleet battled patchy winds off Ireland's southwest coast. Photo: Bob Bateman

Published in Round Ireland

Round Ireland Yacht Race Live Tracker 2026

Track the progress of the 2026 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

About The Author

WM Nixon

Email The Author

William M Nixon has been writing about sailing in Ireland for many years in print and online, and his work has appeared internationally in magazines and books. His own experience ranges from club sailing to international offshore events, and he has cruised extensively under sail, often in his own boats which have ranged in size from an 11ft dinghy to a 35ft cruiser-racer. He has also been involved in the administration of several sailing organisations.

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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