The Great Sailing Battle of Goland
The first edition of the Great Sailing Battle of Gotland came about thanks to the idea of three famous Polish solitary sailors: Radek Kowalczyk, Jacek Zieliński and Krystian Szypka. Krystian preparing to take part in the legendary OSTAR loners regatta (over 3000 miles from Plymouth UK to Neport USA against the wind and North Atlantic currents) had to complete a qualifying cruise of at least 500 miles and a maximum of 2 turning points. At that time, there were no regattas that would meet such requirements (eg the Polonez Cup is only 200 miles) so it was decided to make a new race – one of a kind in the entire Baltic Sea. Because Jacek wanted to start from Gdańsk and Krystian from Świnoujście, it was decided to take advantage of this fact and turn it into a confrontation between the East and the West. The idea was very warmly received in the sailing community and local governments. Very important patronages and great media interest were quickly obtained. Thanks to position monitoring and regular reports of competitors through satellite communication, thousands of sailing fans followed the struggles of two daredevils. The synchronized start took place on October 4, 2012 at 12.00. The conditions were extremely difficult, both sailors went through two strong storms and both suffered some damage on their yachts. The most interesting, however, was the finish, when, after almost 4 days of the murderous race, they both fell into the Bay of Gdańsk almost simultaneously (the joint finish was set in Gdańsk). Just after 4.00 in the morning, assisted by a judge’s motorboat, both crossed the finish line, thereby establishing the historic draw of the first edition of the regatta, which confirmed the organizers’ assumptions – the most difficult Baltic loner regatta was born! The Royal Wester Yacht Club of England confirmed that they fully qualify for the ocean solitary regatta.
This year, the 9th edition of the Great Sailing Battle of Gotland took place and 20 participants took part in it.
This year, not only was the 9th edition of the long-distance regatta held, but the CHL Holding company sponsored the youngest Pole who participated in the Battle of Gotland by Kamil Baranowski. 19-year-old Kamil, from the age of 6, spends every possible moment on the water. Regatta, starts, training and training cruises are his whole element. All this inspired a teenager to decide to be the youngest participant in the Battle of Gotland. On September 13, the cruise began at 12 o’clock.
The 9th edition of the Great Sailing Battle of Gotland has ended with the entry to the finish line of the last regatta competitor, Maciej Hejn on Double Scotch. 20 competitors signed up for the regatta. 16 of them appeared at the start. Five withdrew from the race. 11 reached the finish line.
The winner in the ORC class was Kuba Marjański on Busy Lizzy.
In the Open class the winner was Paweł Biały on the Delphia III yacht. Kamil Baranowski took 2nd place.
Congratulations!
