2025 Star Class European Championship officially opens in Viareggio
by Rachele Vitello 11 Jun 12:26 PDT
9-14 June 2025
The Star European Championship 2025 got under way today in the waters off Viareggio, with two races sailed in light and tricky conditions. As expected, the level of competition is extremely high, and several top contenders have already made their mark on day one.
The first race saw a light westerly breeze of 7-8 knots, demanding precise tactics and fine boat handling. Croatian Tonci Stipanovic, Olympic medalist and seasoned Star sailor, with Tudor Bilic, showed great control and tactical awareness to take the win in the opening race.
In the second race, the wind dropped further, settling around 6/7 knots. The best to read the course was American sailing legend Paul Cayard, who capitalized on every shift and pressure line to take a well-earned victory, for the first time sailing with George Iverson.
"The conditions are pretty steady out here, it's a sea breeze situation and the Star Class is very competitive, 70 boats on the starting line, so the fleet stays pretty tight and it's difficult to find clear air. The racing is challenging and for George and I we managed to win the last race, which was very very fun, and in the first race we were a little too far back to know exactly how I did.. but three more days of racing here and we're really happy to be in Viareggio", commented Paul Cayard, sailing legend and President of the International Star Class.
The provisional ranking is lead by Enrico Chieffi with Nando Colaninno, but with two different winners in the first two races it remains wide open going into tomorrow's schedule, which features two more races and slightly stronger winds forecasted.
The Star European Championship 2025 is organized by Club Nautico Versilia and Società Velica Viareggina, in cooperation with the International Star Class Yacht Racing Association (ISCYRA) and the Italian Sailing Federation (FIV), with the support of the City of Viareggio.
Stay tuned for more top-level racing tomorrow along the Tuscan coast.
Find out more at euro.starchampionships.org