Gdynia Sailing Days 2024 – sailing excitement at its best

The 26^th edition of Gdynia Sailing Days, one of the largest and most important sailing events of the season, is now behind us. For several days, the waters of the Gulf of Gdansk hosted competitors from all over the world, who competed in various regatta classes and formats. This year’s edition provided fans with plenty of excitement, despite the capricious weather and occasional light winds.

Gdynia Sailing Days Cup awarded

The last days of the festival brought the final results of the GSD Cup competition. Sailors competed in the A-Class, Hobie Cat 16, Flying Dutchman (FD), Finn, Preste 18 and 505 classes.

In the 505 class, Andrzej Borowiak and Jan Sibilski (ZLKS Kiekrz) proved to be the best, winning four of the seven races thanks to their good strategy and precise boat handling.
In the Flying Dutchman class, the crew of Paweł Kajeta and Krzysztof Ciemny (UKŻ Lamelka Kartuzy) triumphed.

The catamaran competition attracted the attention of fans – Jakub Surowiec, the current world and European champion, won in the A-Class, while Iga Saj and Maksymilian Nadolski (Stowarzyszenie Port Mechelinki) were the best in the Hobie Cat 16.
Przemysław Marczak (KS Spójnia Warszawa) won the Finn class, while Dominik Kasprzak and Maciej Piasecki won the Preste 18 class.

Poles among the world’s best – Match Racing

This year’s Gdynia Sailing Days ended with the Youth World Championships in Match Racing, organised under the auspices of World Sailing. Sixteen of the best crews from around the globe took part. The Polish team finished the regatta in an excellent 5^th place, beating, among others, the teams from Great Britain and France. The French crew of Marin Micoulot, Camille Pfaff, Aristide Delin and Clarisse Baissa won the competition, impressing with their efficiency – they won 12 out of 15 qualifying races.

“This was our first match racing competition in this line-up, and for me, it was my first time as helmsman. We are very happy and proud because we showed enormous potential,” said Michał Krasodomski, summarising their performance.

A sailing festival in Gdynia

Although the capricious weather repeatedly put the organisers and competitors to the test, this year’s Gdynia Sailing Days once again proved that Gdynia is the true sailing capital of Poland and the world. Sixteen youth crews representing Australia, France, Japan, New Zealand, the United States and Great Britain, among others, took part in the regatta.

These competitions not only promote sailing at the highest sporting level but also integrate the sailing community and attract the attention of water sports enthusiasts.

The Port of Gdynia proudly supports sailing

As a key partner of the event, the Port of Gdynia Authority is consistently involved in initiatives supporting the development of sailing and the promotion of maritime activities. Participation in the Gdynia Sailing Days is also an expression of the Port of Gdynia’s concern for the maritime heritage and sailing identity of our city.

As the Port of Gdynia Authority, we are delighted to support events that promote sport, passion and emphasise the maritime identity of our city. Gdynia Sailing Days is not only a prestigious regatta, but also an ambassador for Gdynia’s sailing tradition on the international stage.

We are already looking forward to the next edition of this unique sailing festival.

Photo credit: Bartosz Modelski/Polish Sailing Association