Cillian Dickson Crowned Keelboat Champion of Champions

 

J24 World Champion Euro and National Champion Cillian Dickson of Lough Ree Yacht Club added a further victory to his stellar season when he was crowned Champion of Champions at the newly formatted Irish Sailing Keelboat Champions’ Cup, hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire over the weekend of 11–12 October.

Dickson was joined by much of his Headcase World Championship-winning crew of Ryan Glynn (Ballyholme Yacht Club), Louis Molloy and Marcus Ryan (both of Mayo Sailing Club). Together, they delivered a commanding performance to take the overall title.

David Johnston (Howth Yacht Club) secured second place, while Fionn Lyden (Baltimore Sailing Club) completed the podium in third.

Despite light winds across much of the weekend, the race committee under RIYC Race Office Michael Tyrrell completed two races for each qualifying flight with Flight A held on Saturday and Flight B on Sunday morning before a fresh easterly breeze filled in for an exciting three-race Final Series in the afternoon.

Joining Dickson in the Final Series were Tom Higgins (Royal St. George Yacht Club), Michael O’Connor (Royal St George YC), and Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin (Kinsale Yacht Club). Dickson and his team dominated the final stage, winning two of the three races to secure the overall victory and the coveted title of Keelboat Champion of Champions.

Higgins placed fourth on 12 points, posting results of 2, 5, 5, while Súilleabháinfinished fifth with 14 points thanks to scores of 5, 6, 3. Rounding out the fleet was O’Connor. His 6, 3, 6 scoreline left him sixth overall on 15 points.

The 2025 event introduced a new split-format structure, separating dinghy and keelboat competitions into distinct stages. 

“Despite the challenging light airs, the race team delivered an exceptional performance, managing to complete two qualifying flights and a final series in Dublin Bay,” said Stephen O’Shaughnessy, Irish Sailing Racing Manager. “It was another incredibly close competition, once again proving the strength and success of this split format. Congratulations to Cillian and the Headcase crew for their outstanding performance to round off an exceptional year.”

All racing took place in identical J/80 keelboats, provided by the Irish National Sailing School, ensuring a level playing field for all competitors.