What's in store for 2022?

Regatta Director Laurence Mead shares the latest...

Although it is early days, entries for Cowes Week are running 30 per cent ahead of any year in the last decade, which bodes well for one of the world’s most celebrated sailing regattas.

The Ball is back

Competitors of a certain age will remember the days when there was a Cowes Week Competitors Ball, and the organisers have announced that in 2022 the Competitors Ball will be coming back. Being run in conjunction with the Royal Ocean Racing Club at their clubhouse on the Parade, the event will be a Black Tie and Platinum Jubilee Best of British theme which gives plenty of latitude on the dress code!

From the old to the new

On the water the event will be celebrating 100 years of highly competitive XOD racing at Cowes Week as well as the

125th anniversary of the launching of the Redwing class who have also been racing at Cowes for over 50 years.

At the other end of the spectrum there will be 20 of the new Cape 31 design, a super high-performance modern race boat, as well of course as a huge fleet of J/70s, the biggest in the Solent every year.

Club Cruisers on a roll Cowes Week will also be continuing with its new Club Cruiser division, separating less experienced teams in more cruising orientated boats (you can have a kettle on board and race at Cowes Week after all!) from the uber-modern performance cruiser-racers, with their bulb keels and latest generation construction methods. Jubilee celebrations

Cowes Week runs from Saturday 30 July to Friday 5

August – but the festivities won’t stop there. On Saturday 6 August Cowes will play host to the Solent Platinum Jubilee Celebration which will see hundreds of Solent racing, cruising and motor vessels taking part in a Fleet Review. Dressed Overall, the yachts will provide an amazing on the water spectacle for visitors to the town. The Fleet Review will be followed by a Silver Spitfire Air Display in the afternoon with a shoreside social event at Cowes Yacht Haven until late.