The 108 team racers came ashore on Saturday after champagne sailing conditions saw the Royal Cork team emerge unbeaten after Day one of the Elmo Trophy at the Royal St. George Yacht Club.

Race officer Conal Casey and his team completed Round 1, and are now halfway through the Gold Silver Bronze round.

Teams enjoyed the event dinner where more sunshine ensured the outdoor seating wasn't a washout!

The home club, RSGYC features prominently with many teams in the Gold league and will be hoping to knock RCYC off their perch.

The Royal Saint George Yacht Club welcomes youth team racers from around the country for its Elmo Trophy competition on August 28th and 29th in Dun Laoghaire Harbour on Dublin Bay.

The event will be sailed in three flights of Firefly dinghies, where teams of six crews will race each other in a round-robin format.

Download the Notice of Race below

Teams must consist of six members from the same club, school or dinghy association. At least two members must be aged 16 and under on 31st December 2021. All team members must be aged 19 or under on 31st December 2021 and still attending second level education in 2021 (i.e. the event is not aimed at University Students).

The home team will hope to defend the trophy won by 'Curious George' in 2019 when 130 races were sailed over the weekend.

This year will see some new entrants such as Glandore Harbour Yacht Club, who have been training in a fleet of Fireflies already this season.

The Royal St. George's Elmo Trophy

The unique format of the event looks to split teams into pools of equal standards to ensure close racing for all while allowing every pool to have a chance to qualify for the quarter-finals.

To be placed on the entry list, email John Sheehy – [email protected]

Download the Notice of Race below as PDF document

Royal Cork Yacht Club's Durcan brothers, Harry and Johnny, along with Atlee Kohl, James McCann and Emily Cullen and Ciara Little from the RStGYC emerged as winners of the third Elmo Team Racing Trophy youth team racing competition, sailed in the RSGYC over the weekend.

Download the overall results below as an Xcel file.

Their edge over the competition was evident, winning all 16 of their races, beating the visiting West Kirby Sailing Club team in the final on Sunday afternoon.

The RSGYC 1 team (Toby Hudson Fowler, Greg Arrowsmith and Henry Higgins) beat their clubmates RSGYC 3 (Helen O'Beirne, Niamh Henry and Morgan Lyttle) to take 3rd overall. A team comprised of Laser 4.7 sailors captained by Tom Higgins won the Silver fleet, with the National Yacht Club winning the Bronze fleet.

Saturday saw 81 races sailed inside Dun Laoghaire Harbour. Photo: Afloat.ie

18 teams took part in the event, with most of the top youth sailors in Ireland competing. Perfect conditions for team racing on Saturday saw 81 races sailed - a credit to the organisers of this growing event. Racing on Sunday morning had to be postponed until the wind died down a little, but race officer Ger Owens successfully managed to get over 30 races sailed in testing conditions. Given the level of interest in the event, and the high standard of racing, the future of team racing in Ireland is looking very bright!

Teams afloat and ready to race in Royal St. George's Firefly fleet

Elmo Trophy winners - 'The Skiff Squad' above, below West Kirby and bottom Team George 1

This weekend sees a high profile list of competitors taking part in team racing's Elmo Trophy, being held in the Royal St. George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire. This is the third year of the junior team racing event, named after the late Graham Elmes, founder of the Irish Team Racing Association.

Reflecting the growth in team racing among our young sailors, there has been huge interest in the event this year.

18 teams from around Ireland and the UK will be competing over two days, with teams of 6 under 18–year–olds sailing in two man firefly dinghys. Indeed, five additional teams had to be turned away as demand was so great to secure places.

The line up includes Laser sailors Johnny Durcan, Ewan McMahon, Luke McGrath, Conor Quinn, Jack Fahy, Sally Bell, Tom Higgins, Henry Higgins, Claire Gorman, Michael O'Sullibhan, 420 sailors Geoff Power, Kate Lyttle and Grace O'Beirne, RS200 sailors Toby Hudson Fowler and Greg Arrowsmith, RS Feva champions Henry Start and Morgan Devine and, of course, 29er sailor Harry Durcan - to name but a few.