Five-year regional regatta calendar announced on Friday

The legendary Barbados Sailing Week will be the first event on the Caribbean sailing calendar every year from 2025 to 2029. The Caribbean Sailing Association (CSA) announced the release of its updated five-year calendar on Friday, aimed at providing sailing enthusiasts with a diverse range of events across the Caribbean region.

 

The local Sailing Week actually comprises 10 days of marine activity, including sailing, kite surfing, and wing foiling. The 2025 event is slated to run from January 10-22, 2025. It will include youth dinghy regatta on January 11-12; coastal races, January 18-19; the world-famous Mount Gay Round Barbados Race on January 21; and wingfoiling and kitesurfing on January 18-19. Prizegiving will be held January 17-22.

 

The 2024 roster of activities include two days of dragon flite remote-controlled sailboat racing at Golden Pond in St Philip.

 

The opening event of the island circuit, Barbados Sailing Week will feature two feeder races – Rum to Spice to Grenada Sailing Week and another to Sint Maarten for the Caribbean Multihull Challenge. Boats participating in the Rum to Spice race will depart from the Cruising Club in Carlisle Bay and travel to Carriacou.

 

The other international events following Barbados Sailing Week, are gearing up to deliver highly competitive and thrilling racing experiences.

 

Per a release from the CSA, the organisation and its members “have meticulously coordinated the calendar to minimise event overlaps, allowing boat owners and crews to participate in as many events as they desire. This strategic planning not only benefits individual sailors but also ensures each Caribbean Island can reap the economic rewards of hosting sailing events.

 

New for 2025 is the Windies Multihull Trophy, which will be awarded at the 2026 Caribbean Multihull Challenge. This prestigious trophy will recognize two multihulls (over 60 feet and under 60 feet) that have competed in the most events of the 2025 Caribbean Circuit and displayed outstanding performance.

 

The CSA Travellers Trophy, which celebrates the best performance and most travelled boats, will similarly be awarded to a monohull at Antigua Sailing Week in 2025.

 

Notable schedule changes for 2025 include the shift of the two superyacht regattas – St Barths Bucket and The Antigua Superyacht Challenge – to a week earlier, due to scheduling conflicts with other international regattas.

 

One-design racing opportunities can be found at various regattas, with IC24’s in St. Thomas, Diam 24’s at the CMC and Sint Maarten Heineken Regatta, VX-One ‘s at Saint Thomas & the BVI Spring Regatta and Petticrow Dragons and RS Elites at Antigua Sailing Week.

The CSA said: “These regattas play a crucial role in supporting local economies, yacht clubs, and sailing programmes, with a strong emphasis on youth participation. Youth teams are actively encouraged to join the events, with initiatives such as the Sint Maarten Heineken Regatta Next Generation program and the Youth to Keel Programme at Antigua Sailing Week providing invaluable experiences for young sailors and local knowledge sharing opportunities.”

(PR/TF)