Ireland's ILCA 7 Paris 2024 campaigners ended a 'tough' week at the European Championships in Hyeres on Monday, with Finn Lynch finishing 25th and Ewan McMahon 11 places behind his Paris rival in 36th in a fleet of 137.

The Gold fleet started a final race after a long waiting on shore and also on the water, but had to be cancelled before the first mark due to lack of wind. The waiting game restarted with zero knots in the course. After a while without any breeze, and when the Race Committee was preparing to make a final decision, the wind suddenly arrived together with rain to allow the last race to be sailed in epic conditions.

Lynch placed 13th to bring him to 25th overall. 

A strong start to the regatta for the National YC's Rio 2016 Olympian looked promising in the breezy conditions for the qualification rounds earlier in the series. However, Lynch suffered in the lighter winds at the crucial later stage in the competition, meaning the hoped for top-ten finish on the Bay of Hyères was out of reach for the 2021 World silver medalist. 

Howth's Ewan McMahon had a faltering start to the event but regained his composure to qualify for Gold fleet and finished 36. Younger brother Jamie had been in the hunt for the top 55 but, in the end, had to settle for the Silver fleet.

The fourth Irish ILCA 7 sailor in action was Tom Higgins (Royal St. George YC), who earned a race win in the Bronze fleet to take seventh place in that event.

The National Yacht Club's Finn Lynch scored a 16th-39th-32nd dropping him to 32nd place overall in a light wind three race penultimate day of the ILCA/Laser European Championships in Hyeres, France.

Three more races were held today by all the fleets, with shifty and patchy 8-12 knots of breeze. There were many ups and downs that made the sailing conditions very tricky for all the 350 competitors, with significant changes in the standings.

"We just didn't find the right mode to get in front of the fleet at the beginning," commented Vasilij Zbogar, Lynch's Laser coach. "The truth is... I don't know; we were going so well before the event, but now we have different conditions.

"Finn mentally was prepared well and is feeling well. We're struggling a little bit for speed in these conditions for the set-up we have could be a little bit better."

Zbogar, a triple Olympic medallist, pointed to Lynch's improved performance in the upper wind range earlier in the week, calling it a "huge step forward." Normally, the Rio veteran would be expected to perform well in the conditions of the past two days.

"I'm not feeling great - I need to be doing better," Finn Lynch said after racing ended. "There is a lot of luck involved in these conditions, but I need to be better so that I can afford to have bad luck."

For the remaining two races, Lynch will be aiming to finish on a high with individual best results though both the podium and, most likely, the top ten are beyond his reach.

It was not a good day for the overnight leader and reigning 2021 Senior European champion Michael Beckett GBR (22-25-2), losing the top spot for the first time in the event. He’s now in second place but only 2 points behind the new leader Pavlos Kontides CYP (4-3-1), who’s counting 32.

Finland’s Kaarle Tapper FIN (5-23-3) is now third with 50. 7 points after him is Jonatan Vadnai HUN (8-18-17) on fourth.

Lorenzo Chiavarini ITA (6-17-13) and Sam Whaley GBR (24-6-10) are tied in 66 points on places fifth and sixth.

Provisional ILCA 7 European Top 10 after 10 races:

1. Pavlos Kontides CYP 32
2. Michael Beckett GBR 34
3. Kaarle Tapper FIN 50
4. Jonatan Vadnai HUN 57
5. Lorenzo Chiavarini ITA 66
6. Sam Whaley GBR 66
7. Niels Broekhuizen NED 72
8. Tonci Stipanovic CRO 74
9. Hermann Tomasgaard NOR 75
10. Jean Baptiste Bernaz FRA 85

Download results below

There was a setback for Irish sailors when the Final series started on Saturday at the 2022 EurILCA Senior European Championships & Open European Trophy in Hyeres, France.

The wind was unstable in both race areas, forcing the Race Committee to adjust the courses frequently before and during the competition.

That added to several failed starts and general recalls meaning that the day ended with only one race for the ILCA 6 Women, no new races for the ILCA 6 Men, and two new races for the ILCA 7.

Any lessons learned in the shifty conditions will be important for the fleet to consider, as this Cote D'Azur race course is approximately 60 km from the 2024 Olympic sailing venue of Marseille. 

Finn Lynch

Rio 2016 Olympian and world silver medallist Finn Lynch (National Yacht Club), whose main aim was to 'stay in the game', had been hoping that the first day of Gold fleet racing would lead to a 'breakthrough' from 15th overall into the top ten. Instead, he was on the wrong side of early windshifts, and he placed 41st and 44th, which dropped the Paris 2024 campaigner to 28th overall.

Lynch's main rival for the single Irish Olympic place, Ewan McMahon of Howth, lies 45th overall in the 169-boat fleet. Jamie McMahon is lying 100th and Royal St George's Tom Higgins 133rd.

No matter the weather or sailing conditions, nothing seems to change the solid performance of Michael Beckett GBR these days in Hyeres.

After winning another race today (the 4th out of 7), the reigning 2021 Senior European champion in Varna is comfortably leading the ILCA 7 fleet with 9 points.

The second place is now for ascendant Jonatan Vadnai HUN with 29, closely followed by Hermann Tomasgaard NOR with 32 points.

Pavlos Kontides CYP and Lorenzo Chiavarini ITA complete the European Top 5 with 34 and 36 points, respectively.

It was a terrible day for the overnight vice leader and 2020 champion Elliot Hanson GBR, scoring a 53-31 today and dropping to the 8th European place.

ILCA 7 Provisional European Top 10:

1. Michael Beckett GBR 9
2. Jonatan Vadnai HUN 29
3. Hermann Tomasgaard NOR 32
4. Pavlos Kontides CYP 34
5. Lorenzo Chiavarini ITA 36
6. Jean Baptiste Bernaz FRA 41
7. Niels Broekhuizen NED 46
8. Elliot Hanson GBR 47
9. Sam Whaley GBR 50
10. Tonci Stipanovic CRO 52

Full results are downloadable below

Eve McMahon

In the ILCA6 women's event, Ireland's sole campaigner for Paris, Eve McMahon (Howth YC), ended the single race in 24th place and 29th overall.

The Women’s fleet has a new leader, and that’s Canadian Sarah Douglas CAN, who finished 3rd in the Gold fleet and leads the Open European Trophy with 14 points.

Olympic champion Marit Bouwmeester of Holand is lying fifth overall at the ILCA 6 2022 EurILCA Senior European Championships & Open European Trophy in Hyeres, France Photo: Yepa Photography

The reigning 2021 Senior European champion Agata Barwisnka POL wants to repeat the title obtained last year in Bulgaria, leading the European championship in second place overall with 23 points after finishing 12th today.

Overnight leader Hannah Snellgrove GBR scored a bad 38th today and dropped to the 8th European position.

Emma Plasschaert BEL is second European with 32 points, followed only 1 point behind by Maud Jayet SUI and Matilda Nicholls GBR.

Marilena Makri CYP won the single race today, climbing to the 19th European position.

ILCA 6 Women Provisional European Top 10:

1. Agata Barwisnka POL 23
2. Emma Plasschaert BEL 32
3. Maud Jayet SUI 33
4. Matilda Nicholls GBR 33
5. Marit Bouwmeester NED 35
6. Maria Erdi HUN 35
7. Daisy Collingridge GBR 43
8. Hannah Snellgrove GBR 48
9. Vasileia Karachaliou POR 49
10. Line Flem Host NOR 56

Rocco Wright

In the ILCA6 Men's event, Rocco Wright (Howth YC), in second overall, was leading the only race of the day until the wind changed, so the race was abandoned. Nothing further was sailed after five hours afloat for either ILCA6 women's or men's events.

There will be a bid to sail three races on Sunday, the penultimate day of the championships, with results critical for Monday's final outcome.

Three Irish sailors are through to Gold fleet at the ILCA/Laser European Championships in France

After a delay ashore to allow near gale conditions off the Côte d'Azur abate, organisers could only get a single race sailed in the quickly fading breeze earlier today.

The single race was enough for three Irish sailors at the competition to make the Gold fleet cut in their respective competitions.

With the breeze continuing to blow off the land, nearby mountains made for tricky shifting wind direction that could easily help or hinder crews.

Gold Fleet for Eve McMahon

Eve McMahon (Howth Yacht Club) had one such encounter in her race today when she found herself on the right-hand side of the course when a wind shift favoured the left.

However, the race was abandoned due to the conditions, and she went on to deliver a seventh place, her best of the series so far which moved her up to 35th place, well inside the top 55 boats that now form the Gold fleet in her ILCA6 event.

"We were racing under a mountain (shadow), so it was very, very tricky and absolute carnage to be honest," she said. "I was very happy, I got a good start, and I was happy with my overall speed; that's how I should be racing all the time."

British sailor Hannah Snellgrove GBR (21-1-2-6-1) was the winner of the single race today and climbed from the 3rd to the 1st position with 10 points. She’s closely followed just one point behind by last year’s champion Agata Barwisnka POL (4-1-2-4-BFD56) with 11.

Canadian sailor Sarah Douglas CAN (14-2-1-3-5) has also 11 points, being second overall in the Open European Trophy.

Overnight leader Maud Jayet SUI (2-9-3-1-UFD56) is third European now, tied on 15 points with the two-times world champion Emma Plasschaert BEL (5-8-6-2-2).

Pernelle Michon FRA (5-5-8-4-5), winner of the recent French championships also here in Hyeres, completes the European Top 5 with 19 units.

Lynch Lying 15th in ILCA 7 Fleet

It was a similar story for Finn Lynch (National YC) in the ILCA7 event. After dropping back to 20th, he was able to play a huge wind shift in his favour and recovered to ninth for the day.

"The first two days were very shifty and hard but today was another level with 30-40 degree shifts," he said after racing. "It was very hard to get a counter result, so ninth is okay.

After passing the halfway stage of the regatta, the event switches into the final round with two races daily scheduled until Monday afternoon - subject to weather which has proven quite unstable all week.

"It's still race by race - but after the first day of the Gold fleet, we'll have a better idea of who the guys fighting for the medals are," said Lynch.

Gold fleet for Ewan McMahon Photo: Yepa Photography/Eurilca

Joining Lynch in the ILCA7 Gold fleet will be Ewan McMahon, who found form enough in the last qualification round to finish just inside the cut-off thanks to a seventh place in the single race of the day.

"I just wanted to go out and give it my all and not come in with any regrets," he said. "The first day, I wasn't performing anywhere close to my potential, and I just wanted to go out and prove that I'm well able to race with these guys."

Unfortunately, the third McMahon sibling at the event had a slip in form as Jamie McMahon had a 42nd place and dropped back to 70th overall from well inside the Gold fleet range.

Overnight leader Michael Beckett GBR (3-2-1-1-1) won his third race today and consolidated his leadership in the ILCA 7 fleet with 5 points. Only 3 points behind comes Elliot Hanson GBR (8-3-2-2-1) with 8, winning his first race in this championship.

The third place overall is now for Pavlos Kontides CYP (2-3-7-10-1), who has also won a race for the first time in this competition. He’s tied in 13 points with fourth Hermann Tomasgaard NOR (17-1-3-6-3).

Lorenzo Chiavarini ITA (5-6-6-1-2) wrap the European Top 5 with 14 points.

Provisional European Top 10 heading the Final series:

1. Michael Beckett GBR 5
2. Elliot Hanson GBR 8
3. Pavlos Kontides CYP 13
4. Hermann Tomasgaard NOR 13
5. Lorenzo Chiavarini ITA 14
6. Kaarle Tapper FIN 15
7. Jonatan Vadnai HUN 15
8. Filip Jurisic CRO 16
9. William Nik Aaron GER 20
10. Duko Bos NED 21

15. Finn Lynch IRL 37

Penalty Topples Rocco From ILCA 6 Mens Lead

ILCA 6 sailor Rocco Wright of Howth YC Photo: Yepa/EurILCA

A penalty applied to Rocco Wright (Howth YC) on Thursday evening saw him slip from the overall lead to second place in the ILCA6 Men's event after he had an eighth place. Nevertheless, only four points separate him from the lead with six races remaining.

Results here

Rio 2016 Olympian Finn Lynch of the National Yacht Club is knocking on the door of the top ten overall at the ILCA 7/Laser European Championships in Hyères, France.

The 2021 world Silver medallist is 14th overall, with just six points between the Dun Laoghaire solo ace and the podium in the 169-boat fleet.

Lynch discarded 13th place today in strong wind Mistral conditions and posted his best result of fourth place in the four races sailed so far.

There is one more day of qualifying races before the gold fleet finals on Saturday. 

 "just six points between the Dun Laoghaire solo ace and the podium"

"I had one counter and a 13, which wasn't a great race," said Lynch. "I'm still in the game, which is the goal for these long, six-day regattas".

"You just need to be within 15-20 points of the leader, and then you're still in the game," he said.

Meanwhile, Lynch's main rival for Paris 2024, Ewan McMahon (Howth YC), had an improved form for the second day when he placed ninth in the breezy opening race, followed by a 20th. His overall standing at 66th leaves him trailing Gold fleet qualification on Friday with a 20-point gap to overcome. 

McMahon's brother Jamie is lying 51st  ((10, 26), and Royal St. George's Tom O'Higgins is 135th.

The reigning 2021 EurILCA Senior European champion Michael Beckett GBR (3-2-1-1) showed a terrific performance today and took the ILCA 7’s leadership with 4 points after scoring two bullets.

The 2020 Senior European champion Elliot Hanson GBR (8-3-2-2) is second with 7. The third place overall is for Jonatan Vadnai HUN (2-4-9-3) with 9.

Kaarle Tapper FIN (7-DNF58-1-2), Hermann Tomasgaard NOR (17-1-3-6) and the overnight leader Duko Bos NED (1-3-19-6) are tied in 10 points on places 4th to 6th, respectively.

12 points are sharing now the recent 2022 World champion Jean Baptiste Bernaz FRA, the 2019 Senior European champion Lorenzo Chiavarini ITA and the 2018 Senior European champion Pavlos Kontides CYP.

Filip Jurisic CRO completes the provisional European’s Top 10 with 13 points.

Friday is the last day of the qualifying series, with the first warning signal at 12:00.

The forecast is for even stronger winds. 

Six days of races are scheduled in total, with the last ones coming on Monday 21st, to decide the new 2022 EurILCA Senior European champions.

Results are downloadable below

One year after his silver medal at the ILCA 7/Laser Worlds in Barcelona, Finn Lynch continues his top form on day one of the 2022 European Championships in Hyeres, France.

Two top six places for the National Yacht Club sailor puts the Rio 2016 rep in a strong position for the final major event of the season in the build-up to Paris 2024.

The 2022 EurILCA Senior European Championships & Open European Trophy started on Wednesday at Cercle d’Organisation du Yachting de Compétition Hyèrois (COYCH) in Hyeres, France.

More than 350 sailors from 65 countries enjoyed great sailing conditions today for the first two races, with winds varying from 10 to 14 knots in the beginning and 18 to 22 knots at the end. of the second race.

The ILCA 7 is the largest fleet at the Senior Europeans, with 169 sailors racing in three fleets on course A.

Lynch of the National Yacht Club lies in the top ten with two more days of qualifying races remaining to decide the Gold fleet split. 

Conditions built steadily during the short day afloat to a brisk offshore wind that brought mixed results for the three other Irish ILCA 7 sailors competing.

Howth's Jamie McMahon scored an eleventh place in the second race of the day, which with his earlier 36th place, moved him to 63rd overall. Older brother Ewan 30th in race one did not finish race two.

Royal St. George's Tom Higgins is lying 133rd.

Dutch sailor Duko Bos leads

After the first two races, it’s the Dutch sailor Duko Bos who is leading the competition with 4 points (1-3), followed by the reigning 2021 Senior European champion Michael Beckett GBR (3-2) and Pavlos Kontides CYP (2-3) with 5. Jonatan Vadnai HUN (2-4) is also close with 6.

Niels Broekhuizen NED (1-8), the reigning 2022 World champion Jean Baptiste Bernaz FRA (1-10), Tonci Stipanovic CRO (9-2), Elliot Hanson GBR (8-3), Finn Lynch IRL (6-5) and Lorenzo Chiavarini ITA (5-6) complete the provisional European Top 10.

George Gautrey NZL, Ryan Lo SIN and Arthit Romanyk THA are ranked 6th, 8th and 11th in the overall European Trophy’s ranking.

Race Day 1 – ILCA 7 Provisional Results are downloadable below

Both Finn Lynch of Dun Laoghaire and Eve McMahon of Howth will be keen to capitalise on their outstanding seasons at the final ILCA event of the year when they compete at the EURILCA Senior European Championships in the ILCA 6 and 7 (formerly Laser and Laser Radial) in Hyères in France

The two front runners are among six Irish competing on the Cote D'Azur that includes McMahon's two brothers, Ewan and Jamie. 

There are 177 in the ILCA 7 men's fleet from 44 countries and another 111 in the women's ILCA 6 fleet from 38 countries.

World Sailing Youth World Champion Rocco Wright is a fourth Howth sailor competing. He competes in the ILCA 6 (Laser Radial) Men's fleet along with Tom Higgins (Royal St George YC) of Dun Laoghaire in the ILCA 7.

As regular Afloat readers know, Finn Lynch reached second in the world in the World Sailing rankings, due to his silver medal at the ILCA7 World Championship in Barcelona in November 2021, which he then followed with a consistent set of 2022 results, including fourth place at the Princess Sofia Regatta in Palma in April and his sixth place at the 2022 ILCA 7 Men's World Championship in Mexico in May.

Eve McMahon - a hat-trick of gold medals in 2022

Hyères regatta will be Eve McMahon's last competition of the year after a hat-trick of gold medals at the ILCA6 (Laser Radial) Youth European Championships in Greece, the World Sailing Youth World Championships in the Netherlands, the ILCA6 (Laser Radial) Youth World Championships in Texas, and finishing with silver at the U21 ILCA Youth World Championships in Portugal in August. More recently, she won the silver fleet at the Texas-based ILCA 6 Women's World Championships.

Amongst the competitors are Olympic medallists and world champions Agata Barwinska POL, Michael Beckett GBR, Lorenzo Brando Chiavarini ITA, Marit Bouwmeester NED, Elliot Hanson GBR, Pavlos Kontides CYP, Zac Littlewood AUS, Emma Plasschaert BEL, Tonci Stipanovic CRO, Hermann Tomasgaard NOR and Matthew Wearn AUS.

Racing begins on Wednesday, 16 November and concludes with the medal races next Monday, 21 November. 

The National Yacht Club's Finn Lynch's superb results have been reflected in the latest World Rankings, issued this week by World Sailing.

Lynch is now ranked second in the world – up from 20th – and by far the highest ranking of an Irish Men's Laser Sailor.

The move up the rankings is an excellent boost to Irish sailing prospects for Paris 2024. It comes on the heels of Finn's second at the ILCA6 2021 World Championships in Barcelona in November – and sixth place at the 2022 World Championships in Mexico in May.

"I am thrilled with this move up the rankings. It shows that the programme we are following is moving strongly in the right direction," he said in a National Yacht Club interview.

Rankings are here

Ten points off a medal, Finn Lynch leaves the Laser/ILCA 7 World in Mexico disappointed not to be on the podium, but it nevertheless confirms the National Yacht Club ace as one of the World's top ten Laser sailors as the battle for a single place in Paris 2024 intensifies.

After his week-long domination at the front of the 126-boat championship, Jean Baptiste Bernaz of France emerged with Gold. However, his lead narrowed in the penultimate race after a disqualification for early starting.

Lynch went into the final day in fifth (he was as high as fourth overall last Wednesday) but overhauling either Croatia's Tonci Stipanovic or 2017 Laser World Champion Pavlos Kontides proved to be too big an ask. Two solid races on the final day were needed to reach the podium and sit with his silver medal from the last world championships in November 2021.

Lynch had a 21st place in the penultimate race, which he couldn't discard, having previously used his discard through gear failure (a downhaul rope breakage in the last qualified on Wednesday that he may well rue). 

He wasn't the only one to drop back as New Zealander Thomas Saunders who was second had to be satisfied with the leather medal after the final shake-up.

The first race of the day brought a little drama when the event leader Jean-Baptiste Bernaz (FRA) got a Black flag, and Pavlos Kontides (CYP) finished fifth, which lifted him to a second overall place, with just 12 points behind Jean-Baptiste. By finishing 14th place, Thomas Saunders (NZL) fell to the third position, only five points ahead of Tonci Stipanovic (CRO).

According to the Notice of Race, the last possible Warning signal at 1500 made it impossible to race committee to give to the Silver fleet a second race, so they finished the championship with 11 races sailed total.

However, the Gold fleet still managed to get their last race started in time and Michael Beckett (GBR) made his best race during the regatta by winning that race. Filip Jurisic (CRO) finished second, which moved him up to the 3rd overall position; Joel Rodriquez Perez (ESP) finished third.

Jean-Baptiste Bernaz (FRA) by finishing 7th in the last race secured his position he held almost the whole regatta and became the new ILCA 7 World Champion.

For the first time, the ILCA 7 Men's World Champion title goes to France!

As the top Irish contender, Lynch is attempting to rebuild after his disappointment of failing to qualify for Tokyo 2020. All credit to him that he is on the right tack at the first opportunity.

A catalogue of quality results achieved since last November shows the depth of the ambition of a new and improved Irish number one.

Since the Laser/ILCA 7 dinghy made its Olympic debut 25 years ago, Ireland has sought a top 30 result at the annual World Championships. Now it has two top tens and a silver medal thanks to Lynch's exploits.

Lynch's own best Worlds performance before Barcelona 2021 and Mexico this week was 31, scored in Melbourne in 2020, a position he also got in Aarhus, Denmark, in 2018. 31st is also a result achieved by his predecessor James Espey in Oman in 2013.

It's not popular to air it in some quarters, but despite 25 years of trying, and until 2021, Ireland had never finished in the top 30 of the World Championships never mind the top ten. You have to go right back to the 'eighties to find any higher Irish results.

In 1983 Lyttle finished 19th and Bill O'Hara 13th, a record, albeit achieved in pre-Olympic times, that stood until Lynch changed all that in blistering fashion.

A short break now follows for Lynch before he returns to competition in The Netherlands for the Allianz Regatta and preparation for the 2023 world championships, which will be the first qualification opportunity for Paris 2024.

Final top ten

1. Jean-Baptiste Bernaz, FRA, 51 points
2. Pavlos Kontides, CYP, 68
3. Filip Jurisic. CRO, 75
4. Thomas Saunders, NZL, 77
5. Tonci Stipanovic, CRO, 81
6. Finn Lynch, IRL, 85
7. Elliot Hanson, GBR, 88
8. Philipp Buhl, GER, 99
9. Jonatan Vadnai, HUN, 101
10. Stefano Peschiera , PER, 105

Full Results

Just six points separate Finn Lynch and the successful defence of his 2021 Laser/ILCA World Championships silver medal going into the final two races of the 2022 championships in Vallarta, Mexico today. 

Despite a 24th scored in race three of gold fleet racing, the Irishman only dropped back one place to be fifth overall thanks to an eighth (his sixth top ten result of the series) scored yesterday evening.

When Lynch won silver in Barcelona at the last world championships in November 2021, it was Ireland's best-ever men's Laser result by a country mile, so the prospect of a repeat performance six months later is a tantalizing prospect for Irish sailing fans today.

While overall leader Jean-Baptiste Bernaz has a 20-point cushion, only six points separate second from fifth in what promises to be a sensational World championship climax in the men's single-handed Olympic dinghy class.

Third and fourth places are held by Olympic medalists who are tied on 51 points.

The National Yacht Club sailor, on 56 points, couldn't be in for a bigger fight. Croatia's Tonci Stipanovic in fourth is a former runner-up and double Olympic silver medalist and the 2017 Laser World Champion Pavlos Kontides (also an Olympic silver medalist from London 2012) from Cyrpus lies third.

Lynch must outsail both if he wants to dispossess New Zealand's Thomas Saunders of his 50 point silver medal position in today's final two races.

Full results here