Ryan and Rock Lead 29er Nationals as St George Hosts Title Race

20th June 2026

Afloat.ie Team

Skiff Action — A 29er crew powers across Dublin Bay during youth skiff racing off Dún Laoghaire. The high-performance double-handed class remains a key pathway for Ireland's next generation of sailing talent Credit: 29er Class

Olympic sailor Barry O'Neill is overseeing racing at the 2026 29er National Championships at the Royal St George Yacht Club, where a closely fought title battle has emerged after seven races of a planned 12-race series.

Ten crews are contesting the championship on Dublin Bay. Three races were completed on the opening day and four more on Saturday, leaving five races scheduled for the final day if conditions allow.

The forecast for Sunday is less favourable, with organisers expected to monitor weather conditions before deciding how many races can be completed.

Royal St George Yacht Club's Juliet Ryan and Ella Rock lead the overall standings after discarding their worst score. The Under-17 crew has posted four race wins and sits on nine net points.

Just five points behind are Gemma Brady and Grace Keating of the National Yacht Club and Lough Derg Yacht Club. The Under-21 pairing recovered from a fifth-place finish in Race Two to remain firmly in contention on 14 points.

A further half-point back are National Yacht Club sailors Louise Hanley and Sebastian Wright. Their consistent scoreline keeps them within striking distance heading into the final day.

The championship remains wide open with five races still scheduled. Any deterioration in Sunday's weather could increase the significance of consistency shown during the opening seven races.

In the Silver Fleet, Royal St George Yacht Club's Amy O'Halloran and Lucas Browne hold the advantage on 27 net points. Ballyholme Yacht Club sisters Emily and Annabel Ridout are second, while clubmates Julian O'Leary and Dillon Kennedy are third.

The 29er Nationals conclude on Sunday at the Royal St George Yacht Club, with the overall title, Under-21 honours and Under-17 championship still to be decided.

Race Results

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Published in 29er, RStGYC, Youth Sailing

Published in 29er

Tagged under

29er

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About the 29er Skiff Dinghy

The 29er is a one-design double-handed, single trapeze skiff for youth sailors.

There is an active class in Ireland, just one of the 38-countries from across all continents now racing the high-performance skiff.

The 29er is one of the latest dinghy classes to arrive in Ireland and has a 50/50 split between boys and girls.

The class like to describe the boat as "The most popular skiff for sailors who want to go fast!".

Derived from the Olympic class 49er class and designed by Julian Bethwaite the 29er was first produced in 1998.

Two sailors sail the 29er, one on trapeze.

The class is targeted at youth sailors aiming at sailing the larger 49er which is an Olympic class.

The 6.25-metre high rig features a fractional asymmetrical spinnaker; a self-tacking jib decreases the workload of the crew, making manoeuvres more efficient and freeing the crew to take the mainsheet upwind and on two-sail reaches.

The 15.00 m2 spinnaker rigging set-up challenges crews to be fit and coordinated, and manoeuvres in the boat require athleticism due to its lack of inherent stability and the high speed with which the fully battened mainsail and jib power up.

The 74kg weight hull is constructed of fibreglass-reinforced polyester in a foam sandwich layout.

The fully battened mainsail and jib are made from a transparent Mylar laminate with orange or red Dacron trimming, while the spinnaker is manufactured from ripstop Nylon.

The mast is in three parts - an aluminium bottom and middle section, with a polyester-fibreglass composite tip to increase mast bend and decrease both overall weights, and the capsizing moment a heavy mast tip can generate. Foils are aluminium or fibreglass.