After a three-hour delay to allow the various warships and ferries to come and go, Plymouth Sound emptied and 20 knots of breeze welcomed the J/24 fleet for day 4 of the Worlds. This heavy wind regatta is starting to take the toll on both the boats and the sailors, as the week claimed its fifth rudder broken on different boats and at last count there has been six booms broken during the event.
Race 6 was dominated by Gekko from Japan who stole a march and out-hiked the fleet for a well-deserved and accomplished victory. The team, who were third at the last Worlds in Seattle, have sailed clean and kept out of trouble all week. Unfortunately in Race 7, they scored a 10 which put a dent in their podium ambitions, but they find themselves in fourth overall, 11 points off a podium.
Friday was, however, about the team on War Canoe, who were the boat of the day scoring two seconds and moving into second overall, just 3 points off Headcase from Ireland who scored an 8 in Race 6 but who followed up with a win in Race 7. Tony Parker’s Bangor Packet had a third in Race 6 to keep them on track but dropped their discard in Race 7 with an 11th. It is extremely tight across the top three boats, but it looks to be advantage War Canoe whilst in second place they have low scores all week and only carry one painful black flag that can be discarded. Realistically, any one of the three boats can win the series, but it will come down to who blinks first. And don’t write off Gekko, as if three races are run on the last day, anything is still possible.
Local boat UK National Champion James Torr in Majic had an excellent day with a seventh and a fourth and are the top British boat in sixth overall, level on points with the Argentinian Tata Patagonia in fifth. Majic is locked in a fierce battle to see who will finish in the top 10, and the German boat Jux is one to watch in this battle.
Event results can be found at https://www.sailwave.com/results/J24WorldChampionship2025.htm
Images: Joe Woodyear & Chambers film & media