The ILCA European Championships concluded today in Kastela, Croatia, after a challenging week of racing that included days of cancellations due to unstable weather and a packed schedule to make up for lost time.
West Australian Zac Littlewood delivered a standout performance, finishing just three points shy of the podium in a final race showdown with New Zealand’s George Gautrey. Despite narrowly missing out on a medal, the result is seen as a significant advancement for the young Australian this season.
“We definitely got the most out of the week racing-wise and I was pretty stoked just to be consistent with the results, all sub-14 scores in the racing,” said Littlewood. “Considering the depth of the fleet and how dynamic the conditions were, it was a really positive week.”
The regatta featured two racecourses, each presenting different challenges. The afternoon sea breezes rewarded strong starts and commitment to one side of the course, while the Adriatic’s renowned Bora wind introduced shifts of up to 60 degrees and constantly changing pressure, keeping sailors alert.
“On the podium front, it wasn’t really until the last race that we looked at the points,” Littlewood explained. “But because the conditions were so crazy, you really just needed to focus on having a good race first and seeing where it ended up. New Zealand and I both had good top-mark roundings, but it was pretty hard to focus on the tactical battle when you’re dealing with 30-degree shifts.”
Littlewood leaves Croatia encouraged by the progress made after a difficult start to the European season. “I’m pretty happy to put a decent score on the board this season after a pretty rocky Palma and Hyères,” he said. “I had a lot of issues with my starting there, so this week one of the goals was simply not getting black flagged and putting together solid starts. To consolidate what I learned with Rafa, work out what went wrong earlier in the season, and then show what a consistent week can look like was a really good sign.”
Ethan McAullay finished 12th overall after an inconsistent regatta, showing strong pace throughout but struggling to translate his starts into effective first-tack positions. His younger brother, Lawson McAullay, also impressed in Gold Fleet, finishing 40th overall in a promising performance.
The regatta was more challenging for the Australian ILCA 6 Squad, which had mixed results. Victorian Casey Imeneo finished as the top Australian in 16th overall, narrowly ahead of Tokyo Olympian Mara Stransky in 18th. Young talent Evie Saunders improved from her earlier European events to finish 26th overall.
This event marks the end of a productive training and competition block for Australia’s ILCA squads, with many returning home for a brief reset before regrouping in Dublin, Ireland, for a training camp focused on local conditions ahead of the ILCA7 World Championships in August and ILCA6 Worlds in September. Before that, the squads will head to Los Angeles in July for crucial training and racing on the LA 2028 Olympic waters.
Full results can be found here.
ILCA 7 (179 entries)
4th – Zac Littlewood (AST)
12th – Ethan McAullay (AST)
40th – Lawson McAullay (AS Squad)
66th – Isaac Schotte (AS Squad)
100th – Alexander Bijkerk (SSPP)
117th – Patrick Scally (AUS)
ILCA 6 (123 entries)
16th – Casey Imeneo (ASF)
18th – Mara Stransky (AST)
26th – Evie Saunders (AS Squad)
31st – Frances Beebe (AUS)
34th – Zoe Thomson (AST)
39th – Elyse Ainsworth (AST)
40th – Sylvie Stannage (AUS)
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