SB20 Australian Championship 2025 at Bellerive Yacht Club - Preview
by Jane Austin / SB20 Aus Media 20 Feb 08:14 PST
21-23 February 2025
Reigning SB20 title holders Karabos (L to R) Simon Burrows, Cole Dabner and Nick Rogers © Jane Austin
Fifteen of Australia's top SB20 sailing teams are gathering in Bellerive for the 2025 SB20 Australian Championship, and with the elite lineup, the scene is set for an intense battle over the three-day event.
Sailed as part of the 21st Banjo's Shoreline Crown Series Bellerive Regatta, the fleet boasts world champions in the open, women and youth divisions, all chasing the coveted trophy held by reigning Australian champion Nick Rogers (Karabos).
Bellerive Yacht Club Commodore Hughie Lewis is predicting a hot contest in "this fantastic sportsboat."
"The SB20 is a great sporty boat to sail... we have some world class sailors that did very well in the world championship just a few weeks ago [in Singapore], so the competition will be hot.
"Will Sargent is a young guy from Hobart, he's at the top of the world in these SB20s, he'll have a very good chance of winning this championship," said Lewis.
Sargent is taking the mainsheet role on Porco Rosso, skippered by Paul McCartney, while Eddie Reid will be up the front.
Victorian entry Nutcracker, skippered by match racing expert Rob Davis from the Sandringham Yacht Club (SYC), finished second in 2024, and will be looking to go one better this year.
Davis is sailing with the formidable David Chapman, who is fresh from a win in the 2025 SB20 World Championship where he crewed on UK-based boat, Xcellent, skippered by John Pollard.
Hot competition is also expected from Big Ted, skippered by Emma Maertens, with her crew Mischa Suda, Mats Maertens, and Brandon Demura also from SYC all looking forward to sailing on the River Derwent for the first time.
Skipper Maertens won the 2024 Australian Women's Keelboat Regatta in a J70 and loves the challenge of one-design sailing.
"It's really great because you can't focus too much on the gear and the sails, it's all about the skills of the sailors," said Maertens.
Duncan Hine, skipper of two-time Sydney to Hobart winner Alive and helming an SB20 for the first time, will need to make a quick adjustment to the difference in boat size to finish on the podium.
Hine is sailing with Glenn Myler, his co-skipper for the 2025 Melbourne to Osaka Cup and Fynley Harding, and has one goal, "not to come last".
There will be a maximum of ten races in the regatta with one discard after six races.
The first warning signal is on Friday at 4pm with sailing concluding on Sunday.