The borders of the European Union for Russians remain closed, yacht regattas and exhibitions are canceled one after another. However, the hope to break out into the big Baltic this season does not leave domestic yachtsmen. We hope for the best and keep our finger on the pulse. In the meantime, here it is, a thinned but still busy calendar of yachting events.
July
The Muhu-Väin regatta is taking place right now (July 11-18). This sailing competition is the oldest in Estonia and has been held since 1958. The regatta participants represent the Baltic countries, Russia and Finland. The race route changes from year to year. This year sailboats started from Pärnu, the final destination of the regatta will be the Tallinn yacht club Kalev.
On July 17-19 the third stage of the Gazprom Cup “Optimists of the Northern Capital” competition will take place. The races will start from the Hercules port in St. Petersburg. As the name suggests, the competition will be on Optimist class dinghies.
The “Days of the Sea” festival in Kotka this year will be held from 23 to 26 July and will be interesting for both adults and children. Traditionally, festive events will take place not only at the main site in the port of Kantasatama, but also will cover the entire city center. The festival has a long history and has been held since 1962. The event is attended by about 200,000 guests annually. It is one of the most significant Finnish festivals and the largest maritime festival in the country. The varied activities (most of them free) include music and dance performances, boat trips around Kotkansaari Island, a wooden boat exhibition, sports competitions and activities for children.
At the Muhu-Väin regatta
Boat competition “Optimist”
A regatta dedicated to the Day of the Russian Navy will take place in St. Petersburg from 24 to 26 July in the Gulf of Finland. The following types of sailboats will take part in the races: cruising yachts L-6, ORC, Sunter 760, Carter 30, Quarter-ton, Dragon, Platu 25.
From July 30 to August 3, the championship of the River Yacht Club of Trade Unions will be held in the Neva Bay. Boats of classes ORC, Sunter 760, Dragon, cruising yachts L-6, quarter-ton, miniton are waiting for the competition.
August
The relay of the sailing races from 3 to 18 August will be picked up by the Russian Championship in the class “cruising yacht L-6”. This is the main competition of the season and an important event within the St. Petersburg sailing week. The strongest racers of the country will have to overcome eight stages on the route St. Petersburg – Kronstadt – Sosnovy Bor – about. Gogland – Vyborg – Primorsk – St. Petersburg.
The fifth stage of the Premier Division of the National Sailing League will take place from 6 to 10 August in the waters of the Gulf of Finland. The crews of the popular J.70 class yachts will compete.
The Sandhamn Regatta will take place in Sweden from 6 to 8 August, featuring classic sailing yachts. A special feature of the regatta this year will be the celebration of the 190th anniversary of the Royal Swedish Yacht Club (KSSS) – the oldest in Sweden and the second largest in the world.
The championship of St. Petersburg in sailing will be held on August 9-15. The event will be attended by boats of the following types: 29th, 49th, 470, “Laser-Radial”, “420”, “Techno”, “Optimist”, “Laser-4.7”, “Laser”, as well as sailboards RS : X.
The 5th stage of the Higher Division of the National Sailing League starts at the Peter and Paul Fortress on August 13 and will last for three days. This competition of the strongest yacht clubs in Russia annually attracts many guests who can visit the racing village on the beach near the fortress, and a professional commentator will help people who are not familiar with sailing to understand what is happening.
The Uiva Flytande in Helsinki is the largest Finnish boat show on water. This year it will take place from 13 to 16 August. The event will feature over 250 boats and yachts. Fishing will be the key topic of the upcoming exhibition: visitors will be able to get acquainted with specialized boats and fishing tackle, as well as learn the secrets of fishing, in which the Finns are great experts.
On August 15-16, the Bjorkezund Regatta 2020 will take place. The start is appointed from the Favorit yacht club in Vyborg. The crews of cruising yachts will compete in who will go the fastest way to Primorsk through Vysotsk, and then from Primorsk to Vysotsky Gate.
On August 20-24, the teams on the J.70 yachts will converge in the top division of the National Sailing League. The venue is the water area of the Neva near the Peter and Paul Fortress.
The International Boat Crew Championship Platu 25 will take place on August 25-29 in Nida, Lithuania, on the Curonian Lagoon.
On August 28-30, the fourth stage of the Gazprom Cup “Optimists of the Northern Capital” and the Cup of Russia – the Silver Cup in the “Dragon” class will take place in the St. Petersburg port “Hercules”.
August 28-30 – Days of the Sea Festival in Szczecin, Poland. This holiday is closely related to local maritime traditions. Sailboats from Poland, Holland, Russia, Germany, Finland and Sweden will line up on the Oder River. Numerous presentations, sports and entertainment programs are expected. There will be a rally of “oldtimers” – sailing and motor boats built before 1950. The event will be decorated with a classical music concert entitled “For those who did not return from the sea”.
Uiva Flytande exhibition in Helsinki
Bjorkezund Regatta
“Days of the Sea” in Szczecin
On August 29-30, in the city of Lomonosov near St. Petersburg, the Oranienbaum Sea Festival and the Orange Race amateur regatta in ten yacht categories will take place. A parade of sailing ships from Russia and abroad will take place on the Sidorovsky Canal. A rich program awaits visitors, including visits to sailing ships, an exhibition of floating crafts, the Rotan Cup inflatable boat race, and fishing competitions. Concert and entertainment programs include a stunt aqua show, a bard music festival, quests, a fair and other events.
September
And again Poland. The colorful sailing festival Baltic Sail Gdansk, traditionally held at the beginning of June, has been postponed to September 4-7 this year. These days Gdansk is waiting for lovers of the sea and sailing ships; guests can not only admire the participating vessels, but also go on a small cruise on the waters of the Gulf of Gdansk. All ships will gather at the Sailboat Parade on the Motława River on Sunday 6 September.
Baltic Sail Gdansk is also open to tourist yachts, boats and motor boats. This meeting is a place to meet and communicate with “colleagues in the shop”, an opportunity to exchange experiences or see old friends. Guests of the festival will see the sights of the old city, the educational and musical areas.
The ninth Nord Stream Race 2020 offshore regatta awaits sailing enthusiasts from September 5, previously scheduled to take place in June. Athletes will follow the fascinating route Kiel – Copenhagen – Stockholm – Helsinki – St. Petersburg. The start of the regatta will coincide with the Kiel week – it was also postponed from June to September 5-13. This is the largest annual festival in Northern Europe, which has become a significant event in the world of sailing and maritime festival with a rich entertainment and cultural program. Usually these days about 2000 ships come to German Kiel, and the number of tourists reaches three million. The central event of the festival is the Kiel Regatta – a stage of the European Sailing Cup in the Olympic program. 2018 turned out to be a record year for the regatta: then more than 4,000 yachtsmen from 60 countries took part in the competition, and the fleet included almost 2,000 dinghies, boards and keel boats.
The St. Petersburg sailing championship will take place from 2 to 13 September in the Neva Bay. Here yachts of the following classes are waiting: cruising, “Dragon”, SB20, Platu 25, “Luch”, “Luch-radial”, “Laser-standard”, “Laser-radial”, “420”, 29th, 49th , ORC, Sunter 760, Finn, also Formula sailboards.
The St. Petersburg International Boat Show (SPIBS) will take place on September 3-6. The exhibition turned out to be in demand and is gaining momentum from year to year. Today it is an important yachting event, and not only for the Northern capital. The number of participants from both Russia and Finland, Poland, Estonia and other countries is growing. In the friendly atmosphere of the River Yacht Club of Trade Unions, you can see and go out to sea on any of the boats you like, and there are more than fifty of them at the berths, from small boats and marine “off-road vehicles” to large flybridge cruisers.
Baltic Sail Gdansk
Sailboats gathered for the “Kiel week”
SPIBS 2019
September 7-3 are the days of the Russian sailing championship in the Hercules port. Participating boats: “Nakra 17”, 49th, 49FX, “470”, “Laser”, “Laser-Radial”, sailboards RS: X and “Techno”.
On September 16-21, the Russian Championship in the SB20 yacht class will take place. The venue is the water area of the Gulf of Finland.
Sailing Champions League 2020 will be held in St. Petersburg from 17 to 20 September. The city has been holding these qualifying competitions since 2016. The finalists of the European sailing leagues will take part – more than 20 of the best yacht clubs in Europe will bring their teams to St. Petersburg, whose goal is to reach the final of the European Champions League. The competition is hosted by the Yacht Club of St. Petersburg, and the general partner of the qualification stage is PJSC Gazprom.
The calendar of significant yachting events of the month is closed by the sailing regatta “Gogland-Rey” (September 22-27), in which the crews of sailing ships of ORC classes and cruising yachts “L-6” will show their strength.
October
On October 3-4, the Royal Swedish Yacht Club will hold an Olympic class regatta for boats of such classes as “Optimist”, “Laser 4.7”, “Laser Radial”, “Laser”, “Finn”, “Nakra 17”, “470” , 29th, etc. It is expected that from 400 to 500 boats from Sweden and neighboring countries will compete in Baggensfjärden Bay near Stockholm.
October in the Baltic is usually not conducive to regattas and open-air festivals, so it makes sense to extend the experience of the season by visiting the annual Boot + Angeln, Wassersport fair in Rostock, Germany. The event will take place from 23 to 25 October at the HanseMesse Pavilion and will focus on yachting, fishing and water sports. More than fifty exhibitors will present boats, engines, sports equipment, surfing and diving products. Lectures, seminars and presentations await visitors to the exhibition.
Text
Ivan Golubev
Photo
Kalev Yacht Club, St. Petersburg Yacht Club Sailing Academy, National Sailing League, Uiva Flytande, infoludek.pl, Domnik Werner / www.testigo.pl, Alina Garazhenko, Mikhail Smotrov, Ekaterina Vaschenko, Landeshauptstadt Kiel – Bodo Quante
Chief Editor
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