Ireland will field two crews at the 2026 49er World Championships in Quiberon, France this week as the road to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics gathers pace.
Olympians Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove will compete in the Men’s Skiff 49er fleet. Erin McIlwaine and Ellen Barbour will race in the Women’s Skiff 49erFX class.
The championship runs from 12–17 May at the National Nautical Institute in Saint-Pierre-Quiberon and is expected to attract many of the world’s leading Olympic skiff sailors.
Dickson and Waddilove arrive in France after claiming silver at French Olympic Week in Hyères, one of the key regattas on the Sailing Grand Slam circuit.
The Irish pair produced a consistent series in Hyères and finished ahead of several leading international crews in a competitive fleet.
Their result marked a significant improvement from the opening Grand Slam event in Palma de Mallorca and strengthened their standing among the top 49er teams heading into the world championship.
McIlwaine and Barbour also impressed in Hyères with a seventh-place finish in the 49erFX fleet.
The Northern Irish pairing are in their first season on the Irish Sailing Senior Squad and have shown steady progress through the early part of the campaign.
Irish Sailing Technical Director Rory Fitzpatrick said preparations had gone well for both crews ahead of the championship.
“Recent preparations have been going well for the two boats going into Quiberon with both of them in the medal race finals in the recent Hyeres Grand Slam,” he said.
“In saying that, this event is a World Championship and there will be stages where the competition will get tough.
“I've been impressed with each of the teams’ character over the past number of weeks so I believe they will find a way to bring their best performance to the racetrack.”
Racing begins on Tuesday with three days of qualification races followed by Gold Fleet racing. The top 10 crews will progress to Sunday’s final series to decide the medal positions.
