A preview of Kiel Week (June 17-25) will take place at the big dinghy and skiff kick-off at the Young Europeans Sailing (YES), in Kiel-Schilksee May 27-29, 2023. This event is organized by the Kiel Yacht Club and theNorddeutscher Regatta Verein (NRV).

In the classes 29er, 420, Europe, Pirat, and the ILCA classes 4, 6 (women and men), and 7 men, approximately 600 active sailors with 400 boats are expected to compete. In addition, the International German Junior Championships (IDJoM) will be sailed in the ILCA 6/w and ILCA 7/m disciplines.

“We are delighted that the German Sailing Federation has again awarded this extra predicate to the YES this year,” said organization manager Dirk Ramhorst, who is looking forward to a full Kiel program in 2023.

The ILCA 6/female and ILCA 7/male will hold their IDJoM as part of the YES.   Photo: Christian Beeck / www.segel-bilder.de

Over three days, the best German junior sailors will compete in seven disciplines alongside athletes from Denmark, Latvia, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, and the Czech Republic. In addition to the titles of YES Champion, the ILCA 6 and 29er (both female and male) as well as the 420er (female and additionally male or mixed), the events of this week will decide who will represent Germany at the Youth Worlds in July off The Hague (Netherlands).

The largest fleet is the ILCA (formerly Laser class), which is divided into four disciplines: ILCA 4, ILCA 6 male and female and ILCA 7. It is not only the quantity, but the high quality at the start that shows the importance of the junior event on the part of the organizers. Julia Büsselberg (Kiel) and Hannah Anderssohn (Rostock), two of the top sailors from Germany and who are already looking towards the 2024 Olympic Games in Marseille (France), will be at the start.

The Olympic discipline ILCA women is also announced. Photo: Christian Beeck / www.segel-bilder.de

In the ILCA 6/m class, the reigning German champion Christoph Wurm (Augsburger Segler-Club) has already registered. He is joined by last year’s second and third in ILCA 4, Tom Struve and Leif Lüders (KYC), who are switching to ILCA 6.

The high-flyers in the 29er, Anton and Johann Sach (LYC), are looking to defend their title. In 2021, the boys from Zarnekau won Kiel Week, the National Championship and the German Youth Championship in their first attempt and were named Immac Young Sailors of the Year. Off Kiel, the Sach brothers will again face local heroes Per Christoffer and Carl Frederik Schwall of KYC, last year’s fourth-place finishers.

The high-flyers in the 29er want to defend their YES title: Anton and Johann Sach (Lübecker Yacht-Club). Photo: Sascha Klahn/Kieler Woche

The duel between the Sach brothers and the Schwall brothers has happened before. In the 1990s, the two pairs of brothers delivered exciting competitions in the Tornado.In addition to the ILCA fleets and the 29ers, 420s, Europe and Pirates are announced for the YES.

YES Schedule:

Friday, May 26:          Registration 4 to 8 p.m.
Saturday, May 27:      registration 8 to 11 a.m., 1st start at 1 p.m.
Sunday, May 28:        further races
Monday, May 29:       more races, last start opportunity at 2 p.m.

Prize giving ceremony, at 4 p.m. (scheduled) at the marina plaza, or in case of bad weather in the Vaasa Hall.

Scoring:

Prizes will be awarded to the top three-point finishers in each class, with additional challenge prizes in each class.
Two races are necessary for the classification of the regatta series. Four races are necessary for the Junior Championship. After three races the worst race will not be counted. The strike in the qualifying race can be replaced by a worse score in the final group.
The U19 division is an extract from the overall class ranking and applies only to competitors born in 2005 or later.

Scheduled races:

29er: eleven races
420er, Europe, ILCA 4, ILCA 6/w, ILCA 6/m and ILCA 7/m: eight races each.