84th Warnemünde Week: Ninth World Championship gold in the H-Boat for title hamster Høj Jensen

Favourites march through at the H-Boat World Championship during Warnemünde Week: In a field of 46 boats, the Danish favourites Claus Høj Jensen, Fredrik Dahl Hansen and Rasmus Jørgen Andresen prevailed against their compatriots around helmsman Anders Bertelsen. The best German crew was Thomas Klausen from the Berlin Yacht Club with Jani and Franzi Funk in third place. However, it was not possible to sail on the final day of the world championships due to the stormy winds.

"Of course I'm glad that we didn't sail again today, as it means I've secured the world championship title," said the twelve-time Danish champion, "I'll be sailing against Anders (ed.: Bertelsen) again at the latest at the Danish Championship in August." He was also glad that he didn't have to go out again, as "the conditions weren't great today". According to the H-boat dominator, the focus would have been more on "surviving than sailing". The new and old world champion was born with a talent for sailing: Father Poul Richard Høj Jensen won two consecutive Olympic gold medals in the Soling with his crews in Kingston, Canada, in 1976 and in Moscow in 1980, was Dragon World Champion twice (1989, 2009) and won the Dragon Gold Cup five times.

46 teams from Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands and Germany turned up at the World Championship starting line off Warnemünde. As expected, the German and Danish H-boat fleets made up the majority. The number of entries from Sweden and Finland fell somewhat short of the organisers' expectations. The President of the German H-Boat Class Association, Christoph Zander, sees the main reason for the absence of many Scandinavian crews in the Ukraine war and the increased transport costs. He said before the start of the World Championships: "We had originally expected over 70 entries. The fact that there are now slightly fewer is due to the fear of the Swedes and Finns that their countries will be drawn into the war. We know that from talking to the athletes."

The H-boat was designed by Finnish yacht designer Hans Groop in 1967. The Evergreen is one of the most frequently built keelboats in the world, with over 5,000 built. Today, the largest H-boat fleets in Germany can be found in the south of the country, especially on Lake Starnberg. In addition to the lakes in southern and western Germany, the H-boat is particularly well represented in the areas around Berlin. This is where four-time and reigning German champion Thomas Kausen, who won bronze at the World Championships, comes from.