ILCA Ireland National Championships Mark 50 Years at Ballyholme

10th August 2025

Betty Armstrong

ILCA racing returns to Ballyholme for the 50th anniversary national championships on Belfast Lough Credit: Eurilca

Following the success of the 2024 ILCA 6 Youth European Championships, Ballyholme Yacht Club will be hosting the ILCA Ireland National Championships next weekend (15-17th August) as the championship celebrates its 50th anniversary.

Up to 150 competitors from across the British Isles and farther afield, including two from Japan, are expected to compete, racing in ILCA 4, 6, and 7 classes over three days.

Eight races are scheduled, and the sailing conditions in Belfast Lough, which is a large open sea area with few tides and virtually no hazards, will be excellent.

This year's Irish Nationals has also been selected as a qualifying event for Irish youth sailors aiming to compete at the 2025 Youth Sailing World Championship in Vilamoura, Portugal. Local favourites include BYC's own Bobby Driscoll, current Irish Youth ILCA 6 Champion, and Daniel Palmer, who was runner-up to Bobby.

The first Irish Nationals were held in 1975 in Kinsale, and in the same year, Trevor Millar introduced the first ILCA (Laser) into Ballyholme Yacht Club. The single-handed one-design class gained a foothold at the club and today, 50 years later, the club still boasts a large fleet of ILCA dinghies, competing year-round.

The championship weekend will be preceded on Friday 15th evening by a celebration of the 50 years of the class in Ireland, and all past and present class sailors are invited.

This event comes at a time when performance sailing in Ireland is enjoying a period of exceptional success. Irish sailors have made their mark on the international stage, delivering strong performances at World and European championships and securing qualification across multiple Olympic disciplines for the Paris 2024 Games.

The success of standout Irish athletes such as Annalise Murphy, who won Olympic Silver in 2016 and more recently from 2024, Olympians Finn Lynch (currently ranked No 7 in the World) and Eve McMahon (currently World number one in the World Sailing rankings) has inspired a new generation of sailors on the island of Ireland.

On the back of this success, Dun Laoghaire will also be the venue for the full ILCA World Championships in 2026, but before that, later this month, the U21 ILCA Youth Championships will be held at the same venue.

Published in Laser, Northern Ireland Waters, Belfast Lough

@ CH Marine website

@ CH Marine Facebook

@ CH Marine NI Facebook

@ CH Marine Twitter

Published in Laser

Tagged under

About The Author

Betty Armstrong

Email The Author

Betty Armstrong is Afloat and Yachting Life's Northern Ireland Correspondent. Betty grew up racing dinghies but now sails a more sedate Dehler 36 around County Down

We've got a favour to ask

More people are reading Afloat.ie than ever thanks to the power of the internet but we're in stormy seas because advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news sites, we haven't put up a paywall because we want to keep our marine journalism open.

Afloat.ie is Ireland's only full-time marine journalism team and it takes time, money and hard work to produce our content.

So you can see why we need to ask for your help.

If everyone chipped in, we can enhance our coverage and our future would be more secure. You can help us through a small donation. Thank you.

You might also want to read...

About the ILCA/Laser Dinghy

The ILCA, formerly known as the Laser, is the most produced boat in the world, with 220,000 units built since 1971.

It's easy to see why the single-handed dinghy has won the title of the most widely distributed boat of all time.

The Laser is a one-design dinghy, the hulls being identical but three rigs that can be used according to the size and weight of the sailor.

The class is international, with sailors from 120 countries. The boat has also been an Olympic class since 1996, being both the men's and women's singlehanded dinghy.

Three rigs are recognised by the International Laser Class Association (ILCA):

ILCA 4: sail of 4.70m2
ILCA 6: sail of 5.76 m2
ILCA 7: sail of 7.06 m2

ILCA 2026 Calendar

Apr 04–05 — Munster Championships — Baltimore SC
Apr 09–12 — Irish Sailing Youth Nationals — Ballyholme YC
May 09–10 — Ulster Championships — East Antrim BC
May 23–24 — Masters National Championships — Howth YC
Jun 27–28 — Leinster Championships — Skerries SC
Jul 24–26 — National Championships — Royal St. George YC
Sep 11–12 — End of Season Championships — Waterford Hrbr. YC

2026 ILCA World Championships

Men ILCA 7: Aug 23 – Aug 30
Women ILCA 6: Sep 04 – Sep 12
Royal St. George Yacht Club & National Yacht Club (Dublin Bay)

At A Glance – Laser Dinghy Specifications

Designer Bruce Kirby & Ian Bruce

Year 1969

Crew 1
Draft 0.787 m (2 ft 7.0 in)
Hull weight 58.97 kg (130.0 lb)
LOA 4.2 m (13 ft 9 in)
LWL 3.81 m (12 ft 6 in)
Beam 1.39 m (4 ft 7 in)
Mainsail area 7.06 m2 (76.0 sq ft)

Racing D-PN 91.1 RYA PN 1088 PHRF 217