Irish Sailors Finish Strong at ILCA 4 Youth Worlds in Aarhus

9th August 2026

Afloat.ie Team

Final Fleet: The ILCA 4 fleet races across Aarhus Bay on the closing day of the 2026 Youth World Championships, where 448 sailors from 51 nations completed a demanding week of competition Credit: Peter Brogger

Irish sailors closed out a demanding week at the 2026 ILCA 4 Youth World Championships in Aarhus with Alex Butcher producing Ireland's biggest climb in the boys' fleet, while Amy Kieran finished as the country's top-ranked girl.

After a week of strong winds, long delays and challenging racing on Aarhus Bay, Ireland's seven-strong team completed the championship alongside 448 sailors from 51 nations.

Butcher climbed from 258th after the opening day to finish 256th overall, marking the biggest improvement among the Irish boys. Jackson Clark remained Ireland's leading boy despite slipping from 141st after day one to 189th overall. John Kenny recovered from 261st after the penultimate day to finish 261st overall, while James Crawford ended the regatta in 268th after being 241st following the opening day.

In the girls' fleet, Amy Kieran finished as Ireland's highest-placed sailor in 60th overall. She improved significantly from 73rd after the opening day and also gained two places from 62nd after Saturday's racing. Kate Spain also made steady progress through the championship, climbing from 111th after the opening day to finish 102nd overall. Amy Shelley, who led the Irish girls in 70th after the opening day, concluded the regatta in 104th after retiring from the final day's racing.

At the front of the fleet, Greece's Eleni Triantou claimed the ILCA 4 Girls world title after holding her overnight lead. "It feels amazing," Triantou said. "It has been a tough week with strong winds and challenging conditions, but I managed to stay calm and focused."

Champion's Crown: Greece's Eleni Triantou celebrates winning the ILCA 4 Girls world title at the 2026 Youth World Championships after leading the fleet into the final day in Aarhus. Photo: Peter Brogger

Switzerland's Leo Gosling secured the ILCA 4 Boys title after a dominant performance throughout the championship. "I'm lost for words," Gosling said. "I came here believing that I could win. I tried to stay calm, stay focused and be consistent."

Golden Glory: Switzerland's Leo Gosling stands atop the podium after securing the ILCA 4 Boys world title at the 2026 Youth World Championships in Aarhus, Denmark. Photo: Peter Brogger

The championship concluded after six Final Series races for the Gold Fleets and five for the remaining fleets, bringing to an end a demanding week of racing in widely varying conditions on Aarhus Bay.

Published in Laser

@ CH Marine website

@ CH Marine Facebook

@ CH Marine NI Facebook

@ CH Marine Twitter

Published in Laser

Tagged under

About The Author

Afloat.ie Team

Email The Author

Afloat.ie is Ireland's dedicated marine journalism team.

Have you got a story for our reporters? Email us here.

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