2026 Women's World Match Racing Tour KDY Women's Match Race - Day 3
by Women's WMRT 9 May 17:11 PDT
7-10 May 2026
The opening stage of the 2026 Women's World Match Racing Tour will conclude with an all-Scandinavian final as Sweden's Anna Östling and Wings Sailing prepare to take on Denmark's Lea Vogelius/ WOW Racing at the Royal Danish Yacht Club's KDY Women's Match Race.
After three days of qualifying competition on the waters off Rungsted Harbour, 2022 and 2023 event winner Östling and her Wings Sailing team of Anna Holmdahl White, Linnea Wennergren, Jenny Axhede, Svea Sahlin and Annika Carlunger once again demonstrated why they remain one of the most respected teams in women's match racing. The team led through a demanding semifinal match, defeating current Women's Match Racing World Champions Match in Pink from France skippered by Pauline Courtois 3-1.
Standing opposite the Swedish match racing champions will be local favourite Lea Vogelius and her WOW Racing team of Louise Ulrikkeholm, Sille Christensen, Josefine Rasmussen and Joan Hansen. Vogelius and crew defeated fellow Danish team Those Segulls skippered by Kristine Mauritzen 3-1 in their earlier semi-final match to advance to tomorrow's final.
"We love sailing the DS37's," commented Östling following the semifinal victory. "Lea and her team have been sailing very well all week and they also know these boats and waters well. We're looking forward to a tough final."
The matchup highlights both the experience of Wings Sailing and WOW Racing, both of whom are no strangers to the larger DS37 yachts. The pair met in the 2023 final of the KDY Women's Match Race (which Östling and crew won), and Vogelius also finished runner-up in the 2024 finals against Danish skipper Camilla Ulrikkeholm Klinkby.
The KDY Women's Match Race was established in 2022 as a founding event of the Women's World Match Racing Tour and has hosted subsequent editions in '23 and '24. With valuable Tour points up for grabs in tomorrow's final, the Swedish-Danish final promises to deliver a memorable start to the 2026 Women's World Match Racing Tour season.
For more information on the KDY Women's Match Race, visit womenswmrt.com/events/kdy-womens-match-race-2026