22nd Royal Langkawi International Regatta 2026 Highlight Of The Day; Race Day 1 (Tuesday, January 20th )
Overview of Conditions and Racing
The first day of racing at the 22nd Royal Langkawi International Regatta (RLIR) 2026 kicked off with ideal weather through Kuah Harbor. After a brisk start to the week, today’s weather saw lighter winds than expected, hovering between 6-10 knots throughout the racing period. Calm seas and light winds provided an ideal introduction to crew first sailing Langkawi waters. Competitive and casual racers merged for a set of basic windward-leeward introduction races with smooth conditions. The course was shifted slightly as the north end was adjacent to a recently sunken ferry which burned and sank the night before but all boats managed to avoid any navigational hazards and have a good day of racing.
Flag honors at race start were presented to distinguished guests from Langkawi Development Authority (LADA): Mr. Wan Kamarul Faisal bin Wan Kamardin, Deputy Chief Executive Officer (Planning & Development) and Dr. Azmil Munif Mohd Bukhari, Manager of Tourism Division and Head of the Langkawi UNESCO Global Geopark. They were accompanied by Mr. Azlan Abdullah, RLIR Regatta Director and Executive Director of Royal Langkawi Yacht Club.
Race Highlights by Class
Scores are a summation of place finish which means after the two first races a perfect score is two with higher scores denoting a lower rank.
Racing Class Racing Class kicked off with a neck and neck start. The Next Factor and Blitz continued their rivalry tied for first place with a score of 4 each. Rolf Heemskerk is skipper of The Next Factor and Nick Burns is the skipper for Blitz. Alive skippered by Duncan Hine sits in third place with 6 points after a first place finish in race 2 despite DNF in race 1 and a recent lightning strike which damaged electronics during the Raja Muda regatta.
IRC 1 Class IRC 1 was a clear win for Char Chan skippered by Kazuki Kihara who took first in both races for a perfect two points. Mata Hari skippered by Vincent Chan sits in second with 5. Skadoosh and Team Jolt sit tied for third at 7 points. Skadoosh skippered by Nandan Chandavarkar while Team Jolt is skippered by Lee Yi Min.
PSC IRC 2 Class The Blue Angel took an early lead with 3 points, skippered by Jeremy Camps. Phoenix and Dynamite follow closely behind with 4 and 5 points, respectively. Phoenix is skippered by Niels Degenkowl while Dynamite is skippered by Maksim Lisun.
Club Class Dash took a strong lead with 4 points, skippered by Sophie A Rahman. First Light and Kesini sit tied for second at 6 points. First Light is skippered by Simon Piff and Kesini is skippered by Peter Jong.
Sportsboat Class ATM Sailing Team took the lead with a perfect 2 points, skippered by Asmawi Bin Azman. A close tie for second means RSYC Racing Team and Team Benetau are tied for second at 6 points each. Team Benetau is skippered by Jungchul Kim and RSYC Racing Team is skippered by Rizal Mahadi.
Multihull Class The Multihulls thrived on the relatively flat water, rounding marks with ease. WoW took a clear lead with a perfect 2 points, skippered by David Liddell. Parabellum and Haruki sit tied for 2nd with 5 points each. Parabellum is skippered by Dan Fidock and Haruki is skippered by Dougal Jackson.
Multihull Cruising Class Cruising Multihulls have just two entrants this year with Serendipity in the lead with 2 points, skippered by Jeff Harris. North Star sits in second with 4, skippered by Bob Azzopardi.
Looking Ahead to Race Day 2 Forecasts suggest a slight increase in wind strength for Wednesday, which should allow for a return to more aggressive, high-speed sailing as the fleet heads south of RLYC. Competitors will be keen to consolidate their positions or make significant moves before the crucial final days of the regatta. The racing is set to commence as scheduled at 09:30 AM.
