Elite women ready for keelboat classic

It’s game time for 20 teams for the 2026 New York Yacht Club Women’s International Championship to be held September 15-19 at the New York Yacht Club Harbour Court in Newport, RI. Thirteen nations are represented in the inaugural edition, with mandatory practice familiarizing the field with the Club’s fleet of IC37s.

Talent is evident from every start, and the fact that different boats are at the top of each lap in the practice races. The forecast for the next few days is on the lighter side, which only creates more opportunities for teams that maybe are not as experienced in sailing the IC37 in heavier air.

“We’ve had three days of sailing it [the IC37], and it’s wonderful,” said Mexico’s helm Elaine Fierro. “We train in Farr 40s, an older boat and heavier boat, so it was beautiful to have the dinghy feel, the planning, moving the weight up and down. We understand that friendship and trust becomes a very important part of our goal, and with that comes doing our best, the competition, making sure we do one step at a time and we go fast.”

Event details – Results – Team rosters

Twenty teams will compete in the inaugural edition of the New York Yacht Club Women’s International Championship on September 15-19, 2026, at the New York Yacht Club Harbour Court in Newport, RI. The regatta will utilize the Club’s fleet of IC37s, a 37-foot keelboat designed by Mark Mills to a brief developed by the Club.

Entered skippers:
Ragna Agerup (NOR)
Nicole Breault (USA)
Marie Klok Crump (DEN)
Hannah Diamond (GBR)
Sarah Douglas (CAN)
Eliane Fierro (MEX)
Karyn Gojnich (AUS)
Megan Grapengeter-Rudnick (USA)
Michelle Lahrkamp (USA)
Dominique Proyoveur (RSA)
Lisa Ross (CAN)
Katie Spithill (AUS)
Ida Swensson (SWE)
Hannah Swett (USA)
Megan Thomson (NZL)
Laura van Veen (NED)
Lena Weißkichel (GER)
Katrina Williams (BER)
Christina Wolfe (USA)
Lijia Xu (CHN)

Source: NYYC