Ireland's Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove made the perfect start to the 2026 49er European Championships by sharing the overall lead after a demanding opening day in Eckernförde, Germany. The North County Dublin duo posted a race win and a second place in difficult conditions to finish the day level on three points with Uruguay's Hernán Umpierre and Fernando Diz.
Three races had been scheduled for all fleets, but strong offshore winds, repeated postponements and gusts of up to 34 knots restricted the men's 49er fleet to just two races.
Heavy rain, cool temperatures and shifting winds made for a testing opening day on the Baltic, although the flatter water rewarded crews prepared to attack. The challenging conditions did little to unsettle the Irish pair.
Speaking after racing, Sean Waddilove said: "It was tricky out there, so we just wanted to get off the line and go as fast as we could, and that seemed to work pretty well."
Britain's James Grummett and Rhos Hawes are third on four points after finishing third and first, while Denmark's Carl Emil Sloth and Nikolaj Hoffmann Buhl are fourth. Kiel Week winners Joshua Richner and Nilo Schärer of Switzerland are sixth after two races.
Looking ahead to the second day, Dickson said: "The goal tomorrow is to keep this momentum going and put together another consistent set of results to make sure we qualify comfortably for Gold Fleet."
With one race lost on Tuesday, the 49er fleet is scheduled to sail four qualification races on Wednesday before the Gold and Silver Fleet split later in the week.
Challenging Start for Irish 49erFX Crew
In the 49erFX fleet, Erin McIlwaine (Royal St George Yacht Club/Newcastle Yacht Club) and Ellen Barbour (County Antrim Boat Club) finished the opening day 39th overall. The Irish crew recorded finishes of 18th and 15th before a capsize in the final race left them 20th in the day's last contest.
Skiff Sprint: The 49erFX fleet races into the opening day of the European Championships as strong, shifting offshore winds test crews on Eckernförde Bay. Photo: 49erSailing
Irish Sailing 49erFX coach Matt McGovern said there were encouraging signs despite the results. "The girls showed good pace today and put themselves in strong positions with some solid starts. However, our boat handling around the turning marks wasn't quite where it needed to be, and that cost us places as the fleet compressed."
"Overall, there's still work to do, but it's a long regatta, and there's plenty of racing still to come."
Italy's Jana Germani and Giorgia Bertuzzi lead the 49erFX standings after scores of 7, 1 and 1, one point ahead of Germany's Marla Bergmann and Hanna Wille.
Valuable Experience for Young Irish Pair
Development sailors Ben O'Shaughnessy (Royal Cork Yacht Club) and Ethan Spain (National Yacht Club) also endured a mixed opening day in the 49er fleet.
Baltic Blast: The 49er fleet powers downwind in gusty conditions on Eckernförde Bay, where winds reached 34 knots during a demanding opening day of the European Championships. Photo: 49erSailing
A capsize in the opening race left the young crew 18th before they recovered strongly with a 10th-place finish in race two. They end the day 39th overall as they continue preparations for the Junior World Championships later this month in the Netherlands.
The championship does not count towards qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games but is regarded as one of the key benchmarks of the new Olympic cycle, attracting many of the world's leading skiff crews.
Racing resumes on Wednesday with the second day of qualification before the fleets split into Gold and Silver divisions on Friday.
