Three regional championships have produced three different winners as the Irish J/24 fleet prepares for its biggest domestic prize of the season at Foynes Yacht Club from 4–6 September.
Headcase, Stouche and Snoopy’s J have each taken championship honours during a closely fought 2026 campaign, setting up an open contest for the Irish J/24 National Championship on the Shannon Estuary.
Headcase Opens With Western Win
The season began with the Western Championships on Clew Bay, where Cillian Dickson’s Headcase took victory ahead of Conor Haughton’s Jupiter and Martin Mahon’s Snoopy’s J.
World class — Cillian Dickson’s Headcase, the reigning J/24 World Champion, opened the Irish regional season with victory at the Western Championships on Clew Bay
Headcase arrived as the reigning J/24 World Champion and a three-time European champion and underlined its position at the front of the Irish fleet with four race wins in the six-race series.
The boat has since been shipped to Australia, where Dickson and his crew are due to defend their world title at the J/24 World Championship in Melbourne from 4–11 November. The team is hoping to compete at Foynes aboard a chartered J/24.
Stouche Takes Eastern Title
At the Eastern Championships on Lough Ree, the title changed hands when Darragh McCormack’s Foynes-based Stouche emerged on top after an exceptionally close weekend.
Just two points separated the leading four boats going into the final race. Stouche won the decider to take the championship, with Snoopy’s J second and Jupiter third.
Snoopy strikes — Martin Mahon’s Snoopy’s J (centre) claimed the Northern Championship on tie-break after finishing level on points with Jupiter and Hedgehog
The Northern Championships on Carlingford Lough tightened the picture further. After four races, Snoopy’s J, Jupiter and Hedgehog were tied on seven points. Sunday racing was abandoned because of inconsistent breeze, leaving Martin Mahon and the Snoopy Racing Team as Northern champions on tie-break.
National Title Up For Grabs
Headcase, Stouche and Snoopy’s J therefore arrive at the Nationals as the three championship-winning campaigns of 2026. But the results throughout the season suggest the challenge runs considerably deeper.
Jupiter, Hard on Port, Il Riccio, Hedgehog and Crazy Horse have all featured prominently during the regional series, with race victories and podium places spread throughout the fleet.
In the hunt — Jupiter has been a consistent front-runner throughout the regional championships and heads to Foynes among the contenders for the 2026 Irish J/24 National title
That competitive depth is one of the enduring attractions of the J/24's, more than 45 years after the international one-design class was established.
Five sailors compete in identical boats without handicap calculations, so the finishing order on the water matches the finishing order on the results sheet.
Ireland’s fleet now encompasses established international campaigns, club sailors and developing Under-25 crews, with the same J/24 capable of competing locally before progressing through regional and national championships to European and World Championship level.
After three different championship winners in three different sailing areas, predicting who will leave Foynes with the Irish National title has rarely looked more difficult.
