Cork's Atlee Kohl and Cathal O’Regan Win Melges 15 European Title for the Virgin Islands

13th July 2025

Afloat.ie Team

2025 Champions with Cork Roots - ISV 1015 – Atlee Kohl & Cathal O’Regan (CORK/ISV) Both Atlee and Cathal hail from Cork, with extensive youth sailing success out of Royal Cork YC and Royal St. George YC. The duo are presented with the inaugural trophy by sponsor Tino Hyland of Hyland Shipping

Atlee Kohl & Cathal O’Regan (CORK/ISV) Both Atlee and Cathal hail from Cork, with extensive youth sailing success out of Royal Cork YC and Royal St. George YC. The duo are presented with the inaugural trophy by sponsor Tino Hyland of Hyland Shipping

Atlee Kohl and Cathal O’Regan from Cork Harbour, but sailing for the Virgin Islands, were crowned Melges 15 European Champions at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta this evening (July 13), debunking the pre-championships hype that American boats would win the inaugural event.

With the title up for grabs, Race 7 of Day 3 kicked off with early fireworks. ISV 1019 (Lola Kohl & Christian Ezequiel) surged into the lead, while regatta leaders ISV 1015 (Atlee Kohl & Cathal O’Regan) rounded sixth, just ahead of USA 1021 (Esteban Forrer & Jeremy Herrin).

USA 1017 (Dana & John Haig) owned the first downwind, rounding first at the gate. IRL 562 (Barry McCartin & Teddy Byrne) surged up the right on the last upwind, while ISV 1019 fought back to reclaim third. ISV 1015 stayed consistent in fifth. On the last downwind. A poor set by IRL 562 allowed ISV 1019 to pounce. USA 1021 slumped to 12th—their worst of the regatta. At the finish. The Haigs held strong for the win. ISV 1019 claimed second, IRL 562 third, and ISV 1015 climbed to fourth, protecting their slim overall lead. Heading into the final, ISV 1015 led by just two points over IRL 562.

The Showdown: Race 9

The start was tense, highlighted by a pre start incident between ISV 1015 and IRL 562. Both went right, looking good—until a late left shift favoured the Haigs, who rounded top mark 1–2 (USA 1017 and USA 1018). ISV 1015 came around third, with IRL 562 in sixth as left-side flyers swept through.

GBR 1023 (Simon & Katie Horsfield) unleashed on the run, grabbing fifth pushing IRL 562 farther back. The Haigs finished 1–2 again, but ISV 1015 sealed the title with a strong third place.

Final Overall Standings (After 8 Races, 1 Drop)

ISV 1015 - Atlee Kohl & Cathal O’Regan - ISV (CORK) - 28 pts
IRL 562 - Barry McCartin & Teddy Byrne - IRL - 32 pts
USA 1021 - Esteban Forrer & Jeremy Herrin - USA - 40 pts.
USA 1018 - Emily Haig & Jimmy Muller - USA - 45 pts
IRL 564 - John & Katie Sheehy - IRL - 48 pts

Full results below

Race Results

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Published in Melges 15, Volvo Regatta

Published in Melges 15

Tagged under

Melges 15

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About the Melges 15 Dinghy

The Melges 15 was designed by Reichel/Pugh and built by Melges.

The design prioritises stability, comfort, ease of use, and performance.

The Melges 15 is built to be sailed by everyone from friends and couples to families and kids. The design offers performance, comfort, and stability in one sleek package.

The Melges 15’s stable hull shape and ergonomic cockpit make it a suitable layout for adult racing and educational sailing. Easy conversion from a club configuration (non-spinnaker) to a one-design setup, provides more versatility to club programs and options for individual owners.

“The Melges 15 creates a clear pathway for junior sailors to get started and stay excited about sailing while also being comfortable and accessible enough for adults to learn, race, or cross-train,” according to Harry Melges III.

With the main design goals focused on stability and performance in various conditions, the boat features a narrow overall beam and a flat cross-section shape for stability, righting moment, and ease of planing. For a more forgiving feel upwind and to navigate larger sea states, the Melges 15 has just the right amount of fore and aft rocker.

Melges conducted extensive research and product testing to produce this layout factoring in cockpit depth, backbone height, and floor plan. The result, they say, is a comfortable environment for both the skipper and crew. The deeper cockpit takes the load off the sailor’s knees helping them feel locked into the boat while the high boom and gnav vang system work together to make the boat easier to manoeuvre.

The asymmetric spinnaker offers an additional performance element, while the single-pull launch and retrieval system makes handling the sail easy and fast.

At a Glance - Melges 15 Specifications

LENGTH 15 ft
BEAM 5 ft 6 in
DRAFT 2 ft 7 in
HULL WEIGHT 230 lbs
SAIL AREA
MAIN 93.6 sq ft
JIB 39.8 sq ft
ASYMMETRICAL SPINNAKER 156 sq ft
CREW 2

At a Glance - Irish Melges 15 class calendar for 2026

April 18–19 – Western Championships, Lough Derg Yacht Club
May 23–24 – Eastern Championships, Royal Irish Yacht Club (as part of Dun Laoghaire Cup)
June 20–21 – Northern Championships, Howth Yacht Club
July 3–5 – European Championships, Riva del Garda, Italy
August 22–23 – Irish National Championships, Royal Irish Yacht Club, Dublin Bay
September 19–20 – Sprint Style Event, Royal St. George Yacht Club (16 races targeted)
Winter 2026/2027 – Additional frostbite racing (dates TBC)