General recalls and subsequent black flags on the starts of both the Open and Classic fleets ratcheted up the tension amongst the frontrunners on Day 4 of the 2026 International Six Metre European Championships, taking place at the Société Nautique de Genève on Lake Geneva, Switzerland.
In the Classic Championship Violeta Alvarez on GBR57 Erica fought back from outside the top ten at the final mark to take her fourth consecutive third place in the series and retake the overall lead. Meanwhile, a second consecutive race win for Eric Monnin on SUI100 Duclop has given him the overall lead in the Open Championship.
A northerly breeze blowing at 10-12 knots was in force as the Open fleet lined up shortly before 1030 this morning for the start of Race 5 of the series. After an initial general recall, the race got away at the second time of asking, but under a black flag. With the fleet spread evenly down the line, it was Duclop that started closest to the committee boat – albeit a fraction late – and was the first boat to tack out to the right.
At the windward gate, Duclop was first around, followed by Foti Lykiardopulo’s GRE1 Aera in second, and Loic Forestier’s SUI77 Junior in third. Close behind in fourth was Basil Vasiliou’s USA 105 Jane Ann, with Dieter Schön’s IVB145 Momo in fifth. Junior and Momo were the first to gybe on to port shortly after rounding the offset mark.
The breeze had dropped to around eight knots as the leaders approached the leeward gate. Junior had eked ahead of Duclop and rounded the right-hand gate mark (looking upwind). Duclop, meanwhile, split to the left-hand mark, while Momo rounded on the right in third, followed around by Aera in fourth.
The pressure had dropped to under six knots at the end of the second beat. Duclop had maintained the lead, with Junior rounding in second place. Behind this duo, overnight leader Jamie Hilton on SUI144 Eau Vive had moved up into third, with Michel Vaucher’s SUI135 Saint-Francis rising to fourth, ahead of Momo in fifth.
With the breeze continuing to fade and become increasingly patchy, the final run was a stressful affair for the leading group. At the finish, the Duclop crew held their nerve to take their second consecutive win, with Momo making the biggest gain on the final leg, as they moved up from fifth to second. Junior took third, with Eau Vive finishing fourth.
After five races completed in the eight-race series, Duclop leads the Open Championship with 12 points, ahead of Eau Vive in second with 14 points. Third overall is Momo with 17 points.
The Classic fleet were also a little over-eager with their first start, forcing the race committee to break out the black flag to keep the crews in check for the second attempt.
At the first windward mark, it was His Majesty King Juan Carlos I of Spain’s ESP16 Bribon that came out of the left-hand side of the first beat to lead the fleet around. Second was Esben Poulsson’s GRE2 Aera, with Andrea Bianchedi’s ITA43 DAN in third.
In a fading and increasingly unpredictable breeze, the Bribon crew held on to first for another lap, before the arrival of fresh breeze on the final downwind leg allowed Jean Daniel Guex’s second-placed SUI15 Beausobre to slip past and take the win. Bribon finished second, with Erica making huge gains on the final leg to take third.
Erica’s owner/skipper Violeta Alvarez put the move down to the sharp eyes of tactician Pablo Iglesias.
“He spotted the new breeze and he went for it,” she said. “We had nothing to lose, so it was worth taking a chance.”
Asked about the extra pressure of the black flag start, Alvarez said she was very conscious of the need not to be too early. “We had a boat to windward of us that wouldn’t move. So it was a tricky position to be in, but looking back, perhaps I didn’t come up on the breeze as quickly as I should.”
Erica now holds a one-point lead over Bribon with two more races left in the schedule, but Alvarez appeared pragmatic about how the rest of the regatta might play out.
“Well, it will be what it will be,” she said. “There’s lots of very good sailors around, and time will tell.”
Yesterday’s overnight leader, Reinhard Suhner’s SUI45 Mecara, now sits in third overall after a sixth place today.
This evening, the competitors will assemble for the European Championships Gala Dinner at the SNG, at which the original painting by French marine artist Marc Berthier, featured in the official event poster, will be auctioned off by International Six Metre President, Louis Heckly. Proceeds from the auction will go to the International Six Metre Archive.
Racing at the International Six Metre European Championships at the Société Nautique de Genève (SNG) on Lake Geneva continues tomorrow, Thursday, July 23 and finishes on Friday, July 24.
International 6 Metre Association 