Part one successfully completed: Warnemünde simply offers good sailing conditions.
A light drizzle lay over the mouth of the Warnow this morning as the first crews for the long-distance race around Bornholm set off to trim their boats. Before heading out to the starting area off the beach, however, the crews had to present themselves. All crews had to be present on deck in front of the central jetty, wearing life jackets and clipped to the safety line, the mooring rope. Only then could they proceed to the pre-start phase.
For the spectators in the grandstand on Warnemünde beach, the weather didn't clear up, but the rain eased and even stopped completely when the first starting group set off at 1:05 p.m. Under the expert commentary of Uli Groß, the spectators watched as the large ocean-going yachts crossed the starting line without any major battles for position, hoisted their colorful downwind sails, and sped off towards the northeast with a strong breeze. The wind was still blowing fairly steadily at 10 to 15 knots from the southwest.
The race committee had, of course, reported the increased number of yachts crossing the shipping lane off Warnemünde, which is heavily trafficked by ferries and freighters. When the traffic control center then announced eight ships entering the waterway during the scheduled start time, it caused a brief moment of alarm. "Thanks to the excellent cooperation of everyone involved and the mutual consideration shown between the incoming commercial vessels and the sailors, everything went smoothly," summarized Dirk Jahnke, the race director of the Round Bornholm race. The ferries even waited briefly outside to keep the channel clear for the crews heading towards Rügen.
28 yachts out of the originally registered 33 boats have been sailing towards Rügen since 1:05 PM with a following wind. The return leg will be interesting, as the crews will have to tack back upwind after rounding the buoy north of Rügen.
“We’ll hoist the spinnaker right after the start and see how we get to the turning mark. And then we’ll just have to see how it goes on the upwind leg,” said Klaus-Dieter Hink of the Saphira before the start.
The participants are generally satisfied with the reduction of the course to just over 100 nautical miles.
“I think we’ll make it safely through the shortened section. If we had sailed to Bornholm, it would have been rough. We certainly won’t be first, but we’ll give it our best shot!” said Oliver Heyne of potosiX, who is sailing double-handed with Bert Cristesen.
The fastest boats in the fleet are expected to arrive Monday evening between 10:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. Most participants are then expected to reach the finish line by Tuesday midday before the predicted strong winds arrive.
Showdown at ILCA 7
The most exciting battle for the podium took place today in the ILCA-7 class. After two dominant days on the water, Nik Aaron Willim was at the top of the list, closely followed by last year's winner, Ole Schweckendiek. Only four points separated the two – practically nothing in the ILCA fleet.
“I’ve always managed to get out of it pretty well, kept myself free from all the stress, and I think today the most important thing was to get going freely and sail my own course,” Ole Schweckendiek summarized his strategy. He succeeded exceptionally well: with first and second place finishes, he delivered a perfect performance.
Things didn't go well for Nik Aaron Willim in yesterday's final race. "Yesterday's last race was bad: I didn't get a good start, made some strategic mistakes, and then had too much of a gap to the front. I gave it my all and was back in third place, but then unfortunately I crashed. Maybe I pushed a bit too hard," Willim reflected on yesterday.
He fought hard again in today's races and was proud of himself for being able to motivate himself so much despite the exertions of the last few days. However, he was ten meters short in the final race. His seventh-place finish wasn't enough to secure the Eastern District Championship title, which went to Ole Schweckendiek from Kiel.
For Willim, however, it was an important participation with a remarkable result. After the last Olympic campaign, he took a break in 2024 and only returned to competitive sailing this year. "I had chronic migraines that kept getting worse, I ended up dependent on painkillers, and then I had to put the sport on hold for a while. I also completed my master's degree on the side," he reflects on the last two years. Now he wants to get back into it and sail actively in the ILCA for at least two more years until the Olympic Games. After the Warnemünder Woche Willim and Schweckendiek are already looking ahead to the World Championship in Dublin, which will take place in a few months.
But both will certainly return to Warnemünde. "When the wind is from the west, Warnemünde is the best spot in Germany," Willim concludes his participation in this year's event. Warnemünder Woche .
ILCA 4 and 6
Photo: Pepe Hartmann
After the ILCA 4 fleet had a break yesterday due to strong winds, the remaining 17 sailors took to the water today for three races. Leader Kira Gremlitza left nothing to chance and even managed to discard her fifth-place finish in the first race. With first and second place finishes in the next two races, the young sailor from the Berlin Yacht Club secured victory in the ILCA 4 Eastern District Championship. Julian Konrad Garbe finished second, despite receiving an unfortunate penalty, which, however, did not significantly impact the outcome of the race. Rasmus Buck completed the podium.
In the ILCA 6, this year's Eastern District Champion Victor Hensel delivered arguably the most consistent performance so far. Warnemünder Woche Six races in a row in first place – the worst result, which was discarded, was second place in the first race.
Far behind them: Peter Selko from Denmark and Stephanie Louise Norton from Hong Kong.
Finn-Dinghy
Photo: Pepe Hartmann
After the strong wind races the previous day with only four starters, the remaining ten sailors took to the water today. However, the two races brought no changes to the standings. André Budzien secured the overall victory in the challenging conditions off Warnemünde, ahead of Fabian Lemmer and Harald Weichert.
"Very challenging conditions. Unfortunately, our fleet wasn't very large. But the best sailors in the class from Germany were here. It was a very interesting competition. It was great fun."
André Budzien is leaving the 88th. Warnemünder Woche Not yet, but starts on Friday in the OK class. Light winds are forecast for the weekend. Budzien would have preferred the opposite. The OK class is somewhat smaller, and he is relatively heavy, he explains. He therefore anticipates more problems with less wind.
Topcat
Finally, the Topcats were able to sail races in all classes. The conditions, with winds of ten to fifteen knots, were better today than before.
Sascha Streichel dominated the small field of Topcat K1 with a total of four first places. Gerrit Haake and Sascha Giebelhausen followed behind him.
In the K2 class, only Ralf Zank and Steffen Johne started on the final day. They finished in that order on the podium – and also in the individual races.
A similar picture emerged in the K3 category. In this class, which already only had three participants, Matthias Horstmann and Enno Harders also competed. Horstmann ultimately stood atop the podium.
O'pen Skiff
Photo: Pepe Hartmann
For the first time, the sailors were able to participate in the O'pen Skiff as part of the Warnemünder Woche out onto the water. With winds of around ten to thirteen knots, the youngest sailors completed two races on their course close to shore off Warnemünde beach.
In the under-13 category, the podium is still very close. Filip Zbyryt from Poland currently leads the list ahead of Benedikt Becker and Henryk Glaza.
Among the older participants under 17, the Polish Paulina Szczepa is extremely close ahead of Florian Schupp and Pawel Sitko.
Due to the predicted weather conditions, it is questionable whether the skiffs will be able to sail their scheduled races on Tuesday. They will likely continue on Wednesday.
