Dublin sailor Nicole Hemeryck and Cork's Joe Griffiths are expected to join Rob Craigie and Deb Fish at the Royal Ocean Racing Club's annual prize-giving in London next month, as the British yacht Bellino collects six trophies following its fourth consecutive RORC Season's Points Championship victory.

The two Irish sailors, both graduates of the RORC Griffin Pathway programme, were part of Bellino's four-person crew in August's 1,805-mile Round Britain and Ireland Race, when the Sun Fast 3600 finished despite breaking its boom and sailing the final 200 miles without a mainsail, as reported by Afloat

Bellino's fourth successive overall championship followed a season with strong Irish connections, including victory in the Two-Handed division of June's Round Ireland Race.

The RORC has now confirmed its full 2026 roll of honour, with Bellino receiving the Jazz Trophy for IRC Overall, Grenade Goblet for IRC Three, Psipsina Trophy for IRC Two-Handed and Boyd Trophy for the Mixed Two-Handed Division.

Craigie and Fish also receives the Keith Ludlow Trophy and Serendip Trophy.

Irish Griffin Graduates Praised

Craigie paid tribute to Hemeryck and Griffiths for their contribution to Bellino's Round Britain and Ireland campaign. "They are exceptional, both of them, with different skill sets," he said. "They were just as keen to get the boat going fast all the time as Deb and I are. You look at someone steering and think they're really good—let me learn from this."

RORC Commodore Fish said the experience demonstrated the quality of sailors emerging from the club's Griffin Pathway programme.

"With my RORC Commodore hat on, it's really satisfying to see how good they are—but it's also their attitude. They're humble, but very, very good," she said. "Everyone says they're going to learn so much from us. I hope they learnt something, but we certainly learnt from them. It was very much like coming in with different things to bring."

Trophy Partnership — Rob Craigie and Deb Fish aboard Bellino, which will collect six RORC awards in November following a successful season that included Irish sailors Nicole Hemeryck and Joe Griffiths among its crew. Photo: Afloat

Fish said she hoped both Irish sailors would join them on stage at the prize-giving.

"Joe and Nicole will be there, and I hope they're happy to join us on stage to collect Bellino's trophies," she said. "We've had a fantastic adventure around Britain together, and that would be quite special."

The partnership between Craigie and Fish has also been central to Bellino's success, with both sailors undertaking much of the yacht's preparation themselves.

"We do the preparation ourselves, so that's a big saving every year," Craigie explained. "Our cash goes on how we make the boat more reliable and faster."

Palanad 4 Named RORC Yacht of the Year

While Bellino topped the Season's Points Championship, Olivier Magré's Mach 50 Palanad 4 receives the Somerset Memorial Trophy as RORC Yacht of the Year.

The RORC Main Committee awarded the trophy to recognise outstanding racing achievement. Palanad 4 also receives the Europeans Cup for winning IRC Zero.

Top Honours — Olivier Magré's Mach 50 Palanad 4 has been named RORC Yacht of the Year for 2026, receiving the Somerset Memorial Trophy and Europeans Cup for its IRC Zero performance. Photo: Arthur Daniel

Skipper Antoine Magré, who races with his father Olivier, described the award as a significant achievement for their family-based offshore racing programme.

"It's a list of names that are in almost all offshore racing history books," he said. "As an amateur, you don't necessarily feel you belong there. For us, this is the main prize in offshore racing. It's a huge achievement."

The Mach 50's campaign included the RORC Caribbean 600, where Magré said the boat proved it could perform upwind as well as downwind.

"It showed she's not just a downwind speed machine. She can sail upwind quite well too," he said.

RORC Class Champions and Annual Awards

Elsewhere in the championship, Trevor Middleton's JPK 1180 Black Sheep won IRC One and the Trenchemer Cup, while RORC Vice Commodore Derek Shakespeare's J/122 Bulldog took IRC Two and the Emily Verger Plate. Bulldog also receives the Highwayman Cup and Gordon Applebey Trophy.

Inka Luhrs and Richard Bretherton's Sun Fast 3200 Zanzibar won IRC Four, while Peter Coote's Dazcat 1295 Slinky Malinki secured the MOCRA championship.

Greg Leonard's Swift took the Class40 title.

Ian Hoddle's Sky Business Game On finished second overall in the Season's Points Championship and receives the Alan Paul Trophy for consistent performance, while the Army Sailing Association's Fujitsu British Soldier finished third and won the Haylock Cup.

Silverware on Show — The RORC's historic trophies await their 2026 winners at the Annual Dinner and Prize-giving in London on 14 November, when Bellino will collect six awards. Photo: RORC

The RORC Griffin programme also features among the award winners, with RORC Griffin receiving the Dillon Perpetual Ladies' Trophy and Peter Harrison Youth Trophy.

Other special awards include the Stradivarius Trophy for Noël Racine's Foggy Dew as best overseas yacht, the Seamanship Trophy for Robin Follin's Solano and the Arambalza Swan Cup for Patrick Moriarty's Astrid.

The awards will be presented at the RORC Annual Dinner and Prize-giving on Saturday, 14 November, at the Institute of Directors in Pall Mall, London. Offshore sailor Dee Caffari MBE will be the guest speaker at the sold-out event.