Royal Langkawi International Regatta 2026 Highlight of the day; Race Day 3 (Thursday, 22nd January)
Overview of Conditions and Racing
The 3rd Race day of racing (Race Day 3) at the Royal Langkawi International Regatta (RLIR) 2026 continued ideal conditions with prevailing northeasterly winds up to 20 knots and slightly hazy skies with cooler temperatures. Races moved from the protected Kuah Harbour to the open waters west of the island.
Multiple boats faced issues after 3 days of racing and quite a few had to retire before races finished. Marikh was unable to start the first race with engine issues and Rama-Rama VG unable to join the race due to electrical system issue and both boat couldn’t leave the marina. Mata Hari retired after the first race with issues. WOW retired during the first race after technical issues. Malabar and The Blue Angel were also unable to start for the second race (Race 7). Venture & Char Chan could not finish the second race for technical issues. Char Chan had a rudder failure endangering their flawless regatta so far following a sweep of 5 first place finishes in a row. North Star having issues with their team and cannot make it to go out to sea.
Race Highlights by Class
Scores here are a summary of the two day’s races. Points for prior racing days are not included. Today races 6 and 7 took place. Overall this means a perfect minimum score of 2 points to any team lucky enough to secure first place for both races.
Racing Class
Alive found their groove today and swept both races after struggling the past two days. They took first today with 2 points. The Next Factor came back after finishing third yesterday to take second twice for 4 points. Blitz dropped to third place with 6 points.
This rebalances overall results with Alive taking first place with a score of 10. The Next Factor now sits close behind in second place with 11 scores. Blitz sits one score behind for third place at 12.
IRC 1 Class
Team Jolt skipper Lee Yi Min notched a fourth place finish and a first place finish to take the day’s lead with 5 points. Skadoosh took a fifth place and a second place to take overall second place for the day with 7 points. Char Chan took their 6th first place in a row before suffering a rudder failure on race 7 and a DNF. If the worst races are dropped from scoring Char Chan may still land a perfect regatta finish.
Overall Char Chan maintains their lead with a score of 6, keeping a strong lead on Mata Hari at second place with a score of 13. Team Jolt holds third place after their successful day with a score of 19.
PSC IRC 2 Class
IRC2 continued a consistent pattern of finishes. Dynamite continued their lead today with a perfect 2 point finish at first place. Phoenix maintained second place with a close 4 points. The Blue Angel finished third place with 6.
Overall Dynamite holds a near perfect first place with a score of 8. Phoenix maintains a consistent second place with a score of 11. The Blue Angel sits in third with a score of 14.
Club Class
Wind of Change skipper Igor Ginzburg had a strong turnaround today with 2 points for first place. First Light skipper Simon Piff broke a previous tie with Kesini to take a solid second place with 4 points. Gannet II skipper Vitalii Plaksin holds third place with 8 points.
Overall Wind of Change continued their lead in first place with a score of 9. First Light follows closely, one score behind in second place with a score of 10. Kesini holds third place with a score of 19.
Sportsboat Class
Team Beneteau skipper Jungchul Kim pulled ahead in a competitive Sportsboat class today. They hold first place with total 4 points for today race. RSYC Racing Team finished strong with two 2nd place finishes during both Race 6 and Race 7, followed by Team FR for 3rd place with 5points.
Overall Sportboat Class remains competitive with one score separating the top three boats. RSYC Racing Team sits in first with a score of 12. ATM Sailing Team is one score behind for 2nd place. Team FR is one score behind ATM Sailing for 3rd place. Tomorrow’s distance race will determine who comes out ahead.
Multihull Class
Multihull Class saw another competitive day with two teams tied for first place at 3 points each. Parabellum and Haruki traded places for three points each. Boreas took third with 9 points, skippered by John Hearne.
Overall Parabellum and Haruki sit tied for first place with 14 scores each. WOW drops to third at 14 scores.
Multihull Cruising Class
Serendipity skipper Jeff Harris maintained the team’s lead in Multihull Cruising with two first place finishes. North Star skipper Rob Azzopardi didn’t make it to go out from marina.
Overall Serendipity holds a flawless lead at 5 scores with North Star in second at 10 scores.
Looking Ahead to Race Day 4
Race Day 4 brings the long distance Round the Island Race which will really test crew skills. Prevailing winds have held steady up until now with 10 knots steady from the northeast. Rounding the south side of Pulau Tuba and Dayang Bunting will provide a proper challenge for boats built for distance racing and island wind shadows will really test agility where it counts as crews trim sails and adapt to varied sea breezes. Forecasts call for similar winds and slightly decreasing air quality as the dry season brings burning smoke from agricultural fields in Burma and Indonesia.
