Plymouth to host 45th edition of the J/24 World Championship in 2025

Plymouth Regatta 2018 © Tom Gruitt / www.tom-gruitt.co.uk

Plymouth, Britain's Ocean City, is to host the 45th edition of the J/24 World Championship in 2025. The Plym Yacht Club, Saltash Sailing Club and the UK J/24 Class Association will jointly run the event which will take place between the 6th and 14th of September 2025, and will be based on the Mount Batten peninsula, supported by Yacht Havens Group and the Port of Plymouth Sailing Association, with 5 days of racing planned South of Plymouth Sound.

Event co-director Sam Marshall said "We are absolutely delighted to have been given the privilege and honour of hosting the 2025 World Championship. J sailors across the country were gutted to not have the opportunity to race in the 2020 Worlds in Poole due to Covid, so to be able to host boats from around the world in the UK will be fantastic.

"The Port of Plymouth has had an active J/24 fleet for at least 30 years, and we are expecting some strong competition in the lead up to the event over the next three years. Events like SailGP have done a phenomenal job of showing what Plymouth has to offer on the water, and we are sure that people will want to travel from across the world to get a chance to sail in the same waters that they have now seen on television with the likes of Ben Ainslie and Tom Slingsby."

"The J/24 is a brilliant boat because it is really quite accessible due to its size and relatively low cost. Teams sail with between 4 and 6 people, so we are expecting to see a diverse selection of sailors from local amateurs to international professionals. We are anticipating over 50 boats, with about 500 people coming to Plymouth for the event over the week. There will be spectator boats on the racecourse too, allowing the public and event partners to get up close and personal with the action. The racing is seriously close and there will be plenty of spectacular boat-on-boat action for the racers and spectators alike. We can't wait!"

The J/24 is the most popular keelboat in the world, with some 5,500 boats sailing worldwide, and although it was designed in 1977, still attracts large fleets internationally, including 20 that actively race in port at the host clubs Saltash SC and Plym YC.

For more information, entry details and how to get involved please visit the event website at j24worlds2025.com

J/24s at the PPSA Port of Plymouth Regatta - photo © Paul Gibbins Photography