Heuwinkel Takes One-Point Lead Into Star Europeans Finale

28th August 2026

Afloat.ie Team

Title Fight – Nick Heuwinkel and Jesper Spehr (GER 8524) race Robert Scheidt and Austin Sperry (BRA 8593), the top two crews separated by one point going into the Star Europeans finale Credit: Matías Capizzano

Max Kohlhoff and Ole Burzinski won Friday’s only race in Medemblik as Nick Heuwinkel and Jesper Spehr took a one-point European Championship lead into Saturday’s finale.

Winning Form – Max Kohlhoff and Ole Burzinski powered clear of Scheidt and Sperry to claim Friday’s race victory as stronger conditions reshuffled the Star Europeans standings. Photo: Matías Capizzano

Germany’s Nick Heuwinkel and Jesper Spehr have taken a one-point lead into Saturday’s final day of the 2026 Star European Championship at Medemblik after approaching storms restricted Friday’s programme to a single race.

The latest change at the top follows Thursday’s two-race programme, as afloat reported, with Denmark’s Jørgen Schoenherr and Ed Wright using two second-place finishes to take the championship lead from early pace-setters George Szabo and George Iverson of the USA.

Five-time Olympic medallist Robert Scheidt, sailing with Austin Sperry, had also surged back into contention on Thursday with a race win after recovering from 15th at the first windward mark.

Title Chase – Robert Scheidt and Austin Sperry remain firmly in contention at Medemblik, sitting just one point behind Heuwinkel and Spehr after taking second in Friday’s race. Photo: Matías Capizzano

But Friday brought another reshuffle as the championship discard came into play.

Kohlhoff and Burzinski Take Friday Bullet

With severe weather forecast to reach the IJsselmeer during the afternoon, the Race Committee made the most of the available morning conditions, sending the 76-boat international Star fleet away on time at noon.

The breeze shifted dramatically overnight and blew from the south at around 14 knots, with gusts reaching 18 knots. Unlike the previous days, the offshore wind produced an unstable racecourse, with substantial shifts and pressure variations creating one of the championship’s most tactical contests.

At the first windward mark, Max Kohlhoff and Ole Burzinski of Germany rounded just centimetres ahead of Scheidt and Sperry after a closely fought opening beat. Behind them, the tightly packed fleet converged on the mark, and there was contact between two boats. No injuries were reported, and damage was minor.

German Bullet – Max Kohlhoff and Ole Burzinski mastered Friday’s shifting 14-knot breeze to win the only race sailed and keep themselves in the championship hunt. Photo: Matías Capizzano

From there, 2023 Star World Champions Kohlhoff and Burzinski steadily extended their advantage on each leg, resisting the challenge from Scheidt and Sperry. By the finish, the Germans had built a comfortable lead over the Brazilian-American partnership, with both crews well clear of the chasing fleet.

Heuwinkel and Spehr completed a strong German showing with third place — a result that would prove enough to put the young pairing at the top of the championship.

Discard Reshuffles Star Europeans Leaderboard

With the discard coming into effect after Friday’s race, Heuwinkel and Spehr moved into the overall lead, one point ahead of Scheidt and Sperry.

One-Point Edge – Nick Heuwinkel and Jesper Spehr’s third-place finish moved the German pair into the Star European Championship lead by a single point with the final day to come. Photo: Matías Capizzano

For Thursday leaders Schoenherr and Wright, the picture changed sharply. Their consistency had carried them to the top of the standings 24 hours earlier, but Friday’s 13th place became their discard, and they slipped to third overall.

The result leaves the European title finely balanced between three crews going into the final day.

Two Races Possible in Saturday Finale

The Race Committee has amended the Sailing Instructions to allow two possible races on Saturday, rather than the single race originally scheduled. Strong conditions could again play a decisive role, with the forecast indicating gusts potentially reaching 27 knots on the IJsselmeer.

After a championship that has already seen Szabo and Iverson, Schoenherr and Wright, and now Heuwinkel and Spehr occupy the leading positions, the European title remains open heading into Saturday’s deciding races.

Pressure On – Jørgen Schoenherr and Ed Wright, who led the Star Europeans after Thursday’s racing, are now third overall after discarding Friday’s 13th-place finish. Photo: Matías Capizzano

Competitors will gather ashore for the championship dinner on Friday evening before returning to the water for the finale.

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The Star keelboat is a 6.9 metres (23 ft) one-design racing keelboat for two people designed by Francis Sweisguth in 1910.

The Star was an Olympic keelboat class from 1932 through to 2012, the last year keelboats appeared at the Summer Olympics at which Ireland's representatives were Peter O'Leary and David Burrows.

Ireland has performed well in the class internationally thanks to some Olympic campaigns including a bronze medal at the Star World Championships in 2000, won by Mark Mansfield and David O'Brien.

The boat is sloop-rigged, with a mainsail larger in proportional size than any other boat of its length. Unlike most modern racing boats, it does not use a spinnaker when sailing downwind. Instead, when running downwind a whisker pole is used to hold the jib out to windward for correct wind flow.

Early Stars were built from wood, but modern boats are of fibreglass and carbon construction.

The boat must weigh at least 671 kg (1,479 lb) with a maximum total sail area of 26.5 m2 (285 sq ft).

The Star class pioneered an unusual circular boom vang track, which allows the vang to effectively hold the boom down even when the boom is turned far outboard on a downwind run.

Another notable aspect of Star sailing is the extreme hiking position adopted by the crew and at times the helmsman, who normally use a harness to help hang low off the windward side of the boat with only their lower legs inside.