Grant Thornton Backs ILCA Nationals Ahead of World Championship Test Event

15th July 2026

Afloat.ie Team

Worlds Warm-Up — At the launch of the Grant Thornton ILCA Irish Championships 2026 at the Royal St George Yacht Club are (from left) Jason Crawford, Partner, Grant Thornton Ireland; Paul Molloy, Commodore, Royal St George Yacht Club; Mick Shelley, Partner, Grant Thornton Ireland; Stephen O'Shaughnessy, Racing Manager, Irish Sailing; Con Murphy, International Race Officer; and Sean Craig, Chair of ILCA Ireland and Event Organiser.

The Grant Thornton ILCA Irish Championships have been officially launched at the Royal St George Yacht Club, with organisers expecting up to 100 sailors from more than 25 clubs when racing gets underway in Dún Laoghaire from 24–26 July.

The national championship will act as the principal test event ahead of the Senior ILCA World Championships for Men and Women, which return to Dublin Bay from late August into September.

Many of the volunteers who will deliver the World Championships—including race management, mark-laying, finish boat, safety, jury, race office and results teams—will also be in action during the national championships.

The regatta will also introduce several technological firsts for Irish dinghy sailing.

ILCA Ireland will become the first Irish dinghy class to deploy robotic race marks at a national championship, while sailors will also use electronic safety tally fobs for the first time at an Irish regatta.

Organisers are planning an active shoreside programme throughout the three-day championship, including daily race debriefs with leading competitors and prize raffles supported by Rooster and Covy.

Competition across the three ILCA rigs is expected to be strong, with all three reigning 2025 national champions returning to defend their titles.

Royal St George's Max O'Hare steps up from the ILCA 4 fleet to compete in ILCA 6, where he joins defending champion Sienna Wright of Howth Yacht Club.

In ILCA 7, reigning Irish champion Fiachra Geraghty McDonnell of the Royal Irish Yacht Club will again face strong international opposition, including Croatian Olympian and renowned ILCA coach Milan Vujasinovic, who claimed overall honours ahead of Geraghty McDonnell at last year's championship.

The championship concludes on Sunday with the presentation of national titles and the announcement of the 2026 ILCA Ireland Transition Year Scholarship winners.

Two young sailors will each receive a month of winter training in Valencia, Spain.

The championship is sponsored by Grant Thornton Ireland and forms an important milestone in preparations for one of Ireland's biggest sailing events of the year.

Published in Laser, RStGYC, ILCA Worlds 2026

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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