Klaipėda ORC Europeans 2026 officially declared open

The wait is over. After three years of preparation, the Klaipėda ORC European Championship 2026 has officially opened, bringing leading offshore racing teams from across Europe to Lithuania’s port city. Klaipėda has become livelier with every arriving yacht, sailor and spectator. Championship flags line the city’s main streets, while a large event arch welcomes competitors and visitors at the entrance to the port. These are visible signs of the importance of hosting an ORC title event in Lithuania for the first time.

The Regatta Village at the Klaipėda Cruise Ship Terminal officially opened at midday on Saturday, offering visitors their first taste of the championship atmosphere. Families explored maritime crafts, model boat workshops, collaborative sail art and educational games; stepped aboard the legendary yachts Lietuva and Ambersail; tested their skills in an onshore sailing challenge; and discovered sailing through virtual reality experiences and boats presented by Klaipėda Sailing School “Žiemys”.

Final preparations underway 

While the public programme began on Saturday, preparations for the competition have been underway since Friday, when the Race Office opened for registration. On Saturday, the experienced ORC Technical Committee, supported by event volunteers, began inspecting the yachts’ sails and safety equipment.

Among the teams arriving with high expectations is Estonian skipper Mati Sepp and his Ecoracer 44 Clean Energy. After taking silver at the recent ORC World Championship in Italy, Sepp expects an especially competitive championship in Klaipėda. “Our boat is well tested, and after the ORC Worlds we made some changes to its balance,” Mati Sepp said. “With Classes A and B sailing together, it will be a very strong fleet. Every boat entered here is well sailed and well rated, so I am sure it will be a tough fight.”

Sweden’s Garmin Team Pro4u arrives aboard Patrik Forsgren’s ONE OFF (modified First 36.7) as one of the leading contenders in Class C. The team won both the overall and Corinthian world titles in Tallinn last year and has since added the Swedish championship title to its record. “We have been training almost every week and competing in the Swedish events that were most relevant to us,” said crew member Emil Forsgren. “We have also had three very good practice days here in Klaipėda, getting used to the conditions and returning to sailing after a short summer break.”

Only three members of last year’s world championship crew remain in the current line-up, making manoeuvre training and teamwork an important part of the season. “The waves here can be quite steep when there is a lot of wind, but it is nice, open water,” another crew member, Lea Maurer, added.

Denmark’s STONY X, skippered by Steen Toftebjerg, faces a different challenge. The team has arrived with hull number two of the new MAT 11 design, launched only a month before the championship. Klaipėda will host the yacht’s first-ever race. “The boat was designed by Matteo Polli for ORC Class C,” said crew member Mads Christensen. “It is designed to be the fastest boat in its group, allowing us to stay clear of traffic around the marks and sail our own race.”

With only a handful of training sessions completed, the championship will also be a learning experience for the Danish team. “We still do not know exactly how fast the boat is, how high it can sail or where its target speeds should be,” Christensen explained. “Every time we sail, we learn. We are not starting completely from scratch, but this will certainly be a learning regatta for us.”

The new MAT 11 will already have a familiar rival in Klaipėda. One of STONY X’s main contenders will be her sistership, the locally sailed Arabela-Citadele, skippered by Raimondas Šiugždinis. This sets up an exciting duel between two of offshore racing’s most talked-about new designs.

Two weeks before the European Championship, Arabela-Citadele won Class C in the ORC Prologue Race Klaipėda, held on 25 and 26 July as part of the 59th Curonian Lagoon Regatta. “It feels like a very fast boat, but now we have to get to know her,” Raimondas Šiugždinis said. “We need to understand the sail settings, optimise the trim and learn how she behaves. Like students before an exam, we wish we had one more night to prepare. We only hoisted all our sails for the first time at the ORC Prologue Race a week ago.”

A championship for sailors and the city

Regatta head Mantas Klimantavičius credited the organising team with turning the long-planned championship into reality. “The time since Klaipėda was selected to host the ORC European Championship has passed very quickly,” Mantas Klimantavičius said. “We have a very strong team that has taken care of everything and made this event happen. Our aim is for the visiting teams to enjoy every day, remember Klaipėda and want to return.”

He emphasised that the championship was created not only for the competitors but also for the city and its residents. “On the water, we have a highly experienced team of race officials and an international jury to ensure fair competition,” he said. “Ashore, anyone, even those who do not yet know sailing, can come and experience the boats and activities, learn more about the sport and perhaps one day become part of our community.”

Klaipėda welcomes Europe’s sailors

Saturday evening’s celebrations began with the Sailors’ Parade, which brought teams representing seven countries from Sailors’ Quay to the Klaipėda Cruise Ship Terminal. At the Regatta Village, sailors, residents and visitors enjoyed an Opening Ceremony featuring performances by Lithuanian artists.

The sailors were officially welcomed by Raimundas Daubaras, President of the Lithuanian Yachting Union; Ecky von der Mosel, Vice-President of the Offshore Racing Congress; Eckart Reinke, Principal Race Officer of the championship; and Mantas Klimantavičius, head of the organising committee.

Raimundas Daubaras emphasised the significance of hosting the championship in Lithuania for the first time. “This year’s European Championship in Klaipėda is a tribute to the achievements of Lithuanian offshore sailing and its pioneers, as well as to our growing recognition as a maritime nation,” he said. “We wish all competitors fair winds, safe racing and every success. Welcome to Lithuania. Welcome to Klaipėda.”

Ecky von der Mosel recalled a vision that began taking shape after the Baltic states regained their independence. “When the Baltic states gained their independence thirty-five years ago, and the first offshore sailing activities soon began, I had a dream,” he said. “If all 11 nations around the Baltic Sea were to use ORC as their rating system, it would be possible to develop a supranational, international regatta centre in the middle of the Baltic Sea, similar to Mallorca in the Mediterranean.”

“Today, we are standing here in the middle of the Baltic Sea, in Klaipėda, and that dream has come true,” he said. “To the sailors, I wish the right wind, fair racing and good luck. ORC will take care to ensure that everyone has an equal chance to win.”

One of the evening’s symbolic highlights was the arrival of the championship flag by boat. A ceremonial party carried it ashore before it was hoisted above the Regatta Village, where it will fly throughout the championship week.

Declaring the Klaipėda ORC European Championship 2026 officially open, Mantas Klimantavičius said: “Fair winds, competitive sailing and may the strongest team win.” He also offered the sailors the traditional Lithuanian salutation “Gero vėjo!”, meaning “Fair wind!”

On behalf of the competitors, Elisa Lindskog of Garmin Team Pro4u (SWE) delivered the sailors’ oath, pledging fair and respectful competition throughout the championship.

After the ceremony, sailors and visitors continued the celebrations at Wind Beats, the Volfas Engelman ICE Non-Alco Party with DJ.

Practice Race next

On Sunday, final registrations and sail and safety equipment inspections will confirm the championship entry list. At 13:00, the Practice Race will give both the competitors and the Race Committee, led by Principal Race Officer Eckart Reinke, an opportunity to make their final preparations on the water.

An ORC competitors’ seminar will follow at 17:00 at the Castle Museum Conference Hall, with the Skippers’ Briefing taking place on the Regatta Village main stage at 19:00.

The championship properly begins on Monday, August 10, with the long offshore race, the Klaipėda Port leg.

The Klaipėda ORC European Championship takes place from 7 to 15 August. Throughout the week, the Regatta Village at the Klaipėda Cruise Ship Terminal will welcome visitors with maritime experiences, educational activities, exhibitions, entertainment and live events offering an introduction to the world of offshore sailing.