Deborah Fish Elected RORC Commodore

5th December 2023

Louay Habib

Dr Deborah Fish is the new Commodore of the Royal Ocean Racing Club

Credit: Rich Bowen

Members of the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) have elected Dr Deborah Fish, OBE, as the new Commodore of the London and Cowes-based Club with effect from 1st January 2024.

She will take up the prestigious role from James Neville. Richard Palmer will take up the role of Vice Commodore from Eric de Turckheim, and Andrew Tseng and Joe Lacey will become Rear Commodores.

Under James and Eric’s leadership, RORC has further strengthened its position as a global leader in offshore racing, successfully introducing the RORC Nelson’s Cup series in Antigua and the new 635nm Roschier Baltic Sea Race. They have also set the foundations for the return of the Admiral’s Cup in 2025, as well as initiating the exciting redevelopment of its Cowes Clubhouse. Both have enjoyed tremendous racing success during their tenure. Eric de Turckheim’s Teasing Machine was awarded 2023 RORC Yacht of the Year after overall wins in the Rolex Middle Sea Race and RORC Transatlantic Race. James Neville’s INO XXX enjoyed many victories and was second overall in the 2021 Rolex Fastnet Race; the best result for a Commodore in office since John Illingworth’s Myth of Malham won the Fastnet Race in 1949.

Deb is the first woman to be elected Commodore of the Royal Ocean Racing Club, which will celebrate its centenary in 2025. She has been very active in her role as a Rear Commodore, chairing the Membership Committee and championing youth sailing through her leadership of RORC’s Griffin initiative. Deb also has a strong offshore racing background having raced with the RORC since 1999 and completed the Rolex Fastnet Yacht Race 11 times. Deb and Rob Craigie sailed Bellino, Rob’s Sun Fast 3600, double handed to overall victory in the 2023 RORC Season’s Points Championship. This was the first time Bellino has won the RORC Championship overall after coming third in 2022 and second in 2019.

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RORC

About The Author

Louay Habib

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Louay Habib is a Maritime Journalist & Broadcaster based in Hamble, United Kingdom

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THE RORC:

Established in 1925, The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) became famous for the biennial Fastnet Race and the international team event, the Admiral's Cup. It organises an annual series of domestic offshore races from its base in Cowes as well as inshore regattas including the RORC Easter Challenge and the IRC European Championship (includes the Commodores' Cup) in the Solent
The RORC works with other yacht clubs to promote their offshore races and provides marketing and organisational support. The RORC Caribbean 600, based in Antigua and the first offshore race in the Caribbean, has been an instant success. The 10th edition took place in February 2018. The RORC extended its organisational expertise by creating the RORC Transatlantic Race from Lanzarote to Grenada, the first of which was in November 2014
The club is based in St James' Place, London, but after a merger with The Royal Corinthian Yacht Club in Cowes now boasts a superb clubhouse facility at the entrance to Cowes Harbour and a membership of over 4,000

At A Glance – RORC

RORC Race Enquiries:

Royal Ocean Racing Club T: +44 (0) 1983 295144 E: [email protected] W: http://www.rorc.org/

Royal Ocean Racing Club:

20 St James's Place, London SW1A 1NN, Tel: 020 7493 2248 E: [email protected]

2026 RORC Key dates

Key RORC 2026 dates extracted from the programme:

January–February 2026
• 11 January – RORC Transatlantic Race (Lanzarote to Antigua)
• February (dates vary) – Nelson’s Cup, Antigua
• 23 February – RORC Caribbean 600

May 2026
• 2 May – Cervantes Trophy Race (Cowes to Le Havre)
• 15 May – North Sea Race
• 22–25 May – IRC European Championships, International Poole Regatta
• 23 May – Myth of Malham Race
• 30 May – De Guingand Bowl Race

June 2026
• 12 June – Morgan Cup (Cowes to Dartmouth)
• 20 June – Round Ireland Race (Wicklow)

July 2026
• 3 July – Cowes–Dinard–Saint Malo Race
• 25 July – Channel Race

August 2026
• 8 August – Baltic Sea Race (Helsinki)
• 9 August – Round Britain and Ireland Race (Cowes)
• 26–29 August – IRC National Championship (Dartmouth)

September 2026
• 4 September – Cherbourg Race

October 2026
• 17 October – Rolex Middle Sea Race (counts towards 2027 championship)