Eleven years after winning the Sailing Champions League for the first time in 2014, the Kongelig Dansk Yachtklub has done it again: Jeppe Borch's crew won the international club competition once more, narrowly beating Mühlenberger Segel-Club, Tønsberg Seilforening (Norway) and Bandholm Seijlklub (Denmark).
Sailing Champions League with club teams from all over the world
The teams from 33 European and overseas sailing clubs from 14 countries lined up directly in front of the Kiellinie to determine their champions. The Hotel Kieler Yacht-Club was the host on this long weekend. The action took place directly in front of the Kiellinie, where the Ocean Race Europe with the Ocean Live Park and above all its seven teams will be hosted in less than a month's time.
The European sailing clubs on Kiel's inner fjord offered top-class sport to cheer about. Teams from Germany, Denmark, Norway, the USA, Sweden, Switzerland, France, Poland, Austria, the Netherlands, Finland, Ireland, Great Britain - and New Caledonia - were at the start of the league's club sailing summit. The team from Cercle Nautique Calédonien had the longest journey, travelling around 16,000 kilometres as the crow flies from New Caledonia to Germany.
The New Caledonians and all the other almost 150 sailors were greeted by typical northern German weather. Sun, grey skies, drizzle and changing winds of up to 14 knots were served up in the Sailing City. The favourites were easy to spot.
One GER club makes it to the "Final Four"
After 14 flights and a total of 42 races, the ten best clubs were only a few points apart before the "Final Four", including the Bundesliga record winners from the Norddeutscher Regattaverein. The crew with helmsman Tobias Schadewaldt, Daniel Reichert, Florian Weser and Luisa Krüger finished ninth in this final of the Sailing Champions League. Only the top four teams made it through to the final. With Jacob Ahlers, Till Krüger, Ole von Studnitz and Benjamin Ahlers for the Mühlenberger Segel-Club, one German team made it into the "Final Four".
The first of the final races brought a tight preliminary decision: The Kongelig Dansk Yachtklub prevailed with a lead of just under nine seconds over the Mühlenberger Segel-Club (GER). The second race was not inferior to the first in terms of high class and excitement: Bandholm Sejlklub (DEN) and Tønsberg Seilforening (NOR) were in the lead for long stretches, but Mühlenberger Segel-Club and KDY overtook them on the final downwind leg.
This time, a 30 metre lead was enough for the Royal Danish team to win the race for the second time in a row - the decider. The Kongelig Dansk Yachtklub won the international test of strength ahead of the Mühlenberger Segel-Club and the Tønsberg Seilforening. The Copenhageners not only celebrated their victory in the competition with 32 other clubs, but also a historic success: eleven years after their first victory in the Sailing Champions League, they are once again the kings of international league sport. Click here for the tracking and results of the Sailing Champions League final.
The second victory - eleven years after the first title
"This moment means an incredible amount to us," said skipper Jeppe Borch after the final race. He continued: "The league has developed enormously since our first title in 2014 - and the fact that we were the first team to win for the second time today makes us proud." The organisers were also positive.
"The record participation of 33 teams and nations such as Ireland, which sent a team for the first time, and New Caledonia, which once again travelled from the South Pacific, shows that the Sailing Champions League continues to grow," said Oliver Schwall, Managing Director of Sailing Champions League GmbH. The event was accompanied by a comprehensive live stream from SailTracks, which broadcast the action on the water in high-resolution images worldwide.
REPLAY! The replay of the live broadcast of the Sailing Champions League final:
