Having been headline sponsor for the very successful 2017 edition, O’Leary Life is continuing its sponsorship of Kinsale Yacht Club's Sovereigns Cup. The news comes as the West Cork Club announces the dates for the 2019 event.

Running from June 26th to 29th next year, Regatta Director, Bobby Nash heads up a KYC team that promises to build on the success of previous editions.

Kinsale Yacht Club during the 2017 Sovereign's Cup Photo: Bob Bateman

"Kinsale's Sovereign's Cup 2019 will run from June 26th to 29th" 

Commenting on the announcement, O’Leary Life Director, Brian Goggin noted, that “Kinsale Yacht Club always run a fantastic series and having seen some of the initiatives and plans for 2019, we believe that the next edition of the Cup will be the best yet”.

The standout performance of the 2017 O'Leary Life Sovereign’s Cup was Rob McConnell’s Fool’s Gold, with a string of six bullets in a Class 1 IRC fleet jam-packed with top-notch racers and no less than eleven J109s writes Peadar Murphy.

Scroll down for our prizegiving photos by Bob Bateman below. See Afloat's 2017 Sovereign's Cup coverage here including race reports, photo galleries and pre-regatta preodictions.

This year’s winner of the coveted Sovereign’s Cup belied the quality and competitiveness of her opposition with flawless execution allowing Fool’s Gold the luxury of discarding a first place! Pat Kelly’s Storm, triumphant in Scotland just a month ago could do no better than a string of second place finishes against the Dunmore East-based Archambault 35, and even John Maybury’s Joker II, so often a race and regatta winner, never scored better than a third place to finish up in third place overall in Class 1 IRC. Such was the awesome consistency of Fool’s Gold and Storm, they repeated their first and second places in ECHO, with Lauren Heskin and Jim Grealish’s NowWhat coming in third overall in Class 1 ECHO.

Sovereigns Cup Winner Fools Gold skippered by Rob McConnell Photo: Bob Bateman

Tony Ackland’s Dark Angel claimed two bullets on the final day to come home ahead of Conor Phelan’s Jump Juice and Johnny Mordaunt’s eye-catching Tshcuss in Class 0 IRC. In Class 0 ECHO, Robert Douglas on Spirit of Jacana was the meat in the Dark Angel and Jump Juice sandwich for podium places with two bullets on the final day helping Mordaunt’s cause no end. There was some consolation for the Jump Juice team when they were awarded the Michelle Dunne Prix d’Elegance for being the most elegant boat at this year’s regatta.

The Jump Juice team won the Michelle Dunne Prix d’Elegance for the best presented boat at the 2017 regatta. Photo: Bob Bateman

Local boat Artful Dodger, skippered by former Kinsale Yacht Club Commodore Finbarr O’Regan claimed overall victory in Class 2 IRC by the tightest of margins, squeezing out Kieran Collins’ Coracle VI by just 0.5 points after six races. 2015 Sovereign’s Cup winner Equinox, skippered by Ross McDonald, mounted a worthy defence of her crown and clinched third place overall by just 0.5 points also, in a fleet where every 0.5 points was significant. In Class 2 ECHO, Coracle VI claimed top honours, and the Portcullis Trophy for the best performing boat in ECHO, with Jim Cartwright’s Daydream Believer claiming second spot for the Liverpudlian team on tied points with Artful Dodger - getting her bow in front on count back.

Paddy Kyne’s Maximus, a Sovereigns Cup class winner Photo: Bob Bateman

Howth Yacht Club dominated in Class 3, where Paddy Kyne’s Maximus brought her 2015 form back to this year’s regatta finishing top of IRC on just seven points from five scoring races, after discarding a third place. Maximus was in good company, with the evergreen Dux, long campaigned by perennial visitor to Sovereign’s Cup, Anthony Gore-Grimes, in second place with Royal Cork’s Bad Company (Desmond, Ivers and Deasy) claiming third overall in IRC. In ECHO, Howth Yacht Club and X-302s claimed a 1-2-3 with Maximus, Dux and Eddie Bourke’s Xebec claiming the podium places in a very tight class, with Bad Company unfortunate to miss out on third place on count back.

 Sybil McCormack & Ken Lawless’ Cartoon was the only boat to feature in ECHO and IRC Photo: Bob Bateman

Class 4 proved to be the most open class with five different boats claiming the six available podium positions in IRC and ECHO. Sybil McCormack & Ken Lawless’ Cartoon was the only boat to feature in ECHO and IRC, winning the ECHO division and coming third in IRC. Only eight points separated the top six boats in ECHO, with David Delahunty’s Fulmar Fever and Jim Monaghan’s Enigma finishing up in second and third place overall. In IRC, Sinéad Enright’s J24 YaGottaWanna claimed top honours for Royal Cork Yacht Club while James and David Dwyer’s Anchor Challenge claimed second place.

Howth Yacht Club’s Colm Bermingham on Bite the Bullet claimed top spot overall in White Sails 1 IRC in a tight tussle with Denis Murphy’s Nieulargo and the McCarthy Brothers’ Baccarat coming home in second and third respectively. In ECHO, Nieulargo claimed top spot for Royal Cork, with Shane Statham’s Slack Alice, often a competitor in the spinnaker fleets in previous events, taking second place, with the Waterford Harbour Sailing Club visitor forcing Baccarat to third spot.

Stephanie Ennis and Windsor Lauden’s Demelza was the runaway winner of White Sails 2 IRC, with a string of bullets for the Club Shamrock. Samuel Cohen’s Gunsmoke II from Kinsale claimed two second places on the final day to hold off Royal Cork’s Tom McCarthy’s Whistlin’ Dixie for second place with two points separating them in the end. In ECHO, Dermot Lanigan’s Privateer came out top for KYC, with Demelza shading second place from Tom O’Mahony’s Loch Gréine on count back. An outstanding week for Demelza was capped with the Howth team being judged the inaugural winner of the O’Leary Life Family Boat prize.

In the Coastal Class, the blown out day on Friday meant that there were no discards and after the three races, the overall podium positions in IRC and ECHO were identical. Conor Doyle’s Freya, fresh from a broken boom in KYC’s Spring Series, claimed top spot, despite not matching her race winning exploits of Wednesday and Thursday. The Coastal Class was locked out by Kinsale Yacht Club boats with the Carroll Brothers’ Chancer second overall, with John Godkin’s Godot finishing the event in third place.

1720 Euro Champion – Anthony O'Leary Photo: Bob Bateman

In the 1720 European Championships, run as part of the O’Leary Life Sovereign’s Cup this year, Anthony O’Leary’s Antix was crowned 2017 Champion despite a heavy collision in pre-start manoeuvres for the final race. The level of competition in this fleet was underlined by the fact that there were seven different winning boats in just nine races! Antix was the only boat to win more than one race, and that consistency ensured overall victory from son and former Olympian Peter’s Dutch Gold, with Tom Durcan’s T-Bone putting in a final day rally to claim third overall.

Post Sovereigns Cup celebrations at Kinsale Yacht Club Photo: Bob Bateman

2017 Sovereign's Cup Prizegiving

Kinsale Yacht Club Commodore Tom Roche, Cork County Council’s Kevin Murphy, Brian Goggin of sponsors O’Leary Life and Mike Walsh, Sovereign’s Cup Regatta director, presented the prizes for this year’s Cup at a packed Kinsale Yacht Club

Photos by Bob Bateman

After yesterday's cancellations due to strong winds, 2017's O'Leary Life Sovereign's Cup concluded in fine style off Kinsale today.

Bob Bateman captured the final races for Afloat.ie. See the gallery below.

Difficulty in anchoring Sovereign's Cup Commitee Boats in a large Atlantic swell has been given for the postponement of today's racing off Kinsale. 

Racing for the 98–boat fleet is scheduled again for tomorrow (Saturday) for the final day of 2017 Cup competition at Kinsale Yacht Club. 

Read all Afloat.ie's coverage so far here.

The halfway stage of the O’Leary Life Sovereigns Cup at Kinsale Yacht Club was marked by perfect sailing conditions today with the 98-strong fleet revelling in the steadily building breeze that topped out with 25 knot gusts and brilliant sunshine throughout the day.

Bob Bateman's Day Two photo gallery is here. All Afloat's Sovereign's Cup 2017 is here. Results are here.  Afloat's Sovereign's Cup 2017 predictions here. 

Most divisions now feature a short-list of contenders for class wins though few can match the consistency of Rob McConnell’s Fool’s Gold from Waterford Harbour Sailing Club for delivery a fourth straight win in Division 1.

However, with half the regatta at stake including a forecast strong-wind day tomorrow (Friday), much remains to play for especially by David Kelly’s Storm from Howth, the consistent runner-up in the class and lags by just four points.

Andrew Algeo's J/109 Juggerknot from the Royal Irish Yacht Club is tied on 16–points for third place overall. Photo: Bob Bateman

“The key to the day was doing everything in plenty of time - and staying upright...” remarked Tim Goodbody, skipper of J109 White Mischief that is currently sixth overall in the 18-strong Division 1 fleet.

Kinsale’s own Conor Doyle on Freya has also delivered a straight run of first places albeit with just two races sailed in the much longer courses of the Coastal Division. Yesterday featured a 32-mile, 4.5 hour race that included a leg around the scenic Old Head of Kinsale into Courtmacsherry Bay and back.

Kieran Collins' Olson 30 Coracle VI (77883) from Royal Cork Yacht Club has three wins from four races and leads class two IRC Photo: Bob Bateman

Closer to Kinsale, the bulk of the regatta fleet sailed a mixture of Windward-Leeward and Round the Cans style courses with relatively flat seas thanks to the shelter of the Old Head peninsula. Nevertheless, there were widespread broaches and busted sails in the gusts.

Brian Goggin's Jeanneau 349 Allure of the host club is racing in Non–spinnaker 2. Photo: Bob Bateman

“We had exciting racing and plenty of drama plus a few cuts and bruises, especially in the second race after one of the sheets got fouled in the steering gear... fun was had by all!” said Brian McCarthy, skipper of Baccarat that leads White Sails Division 1 on Progressive ECHO handicap.

In Division 4, Sinead Enright’s J24 YaGottaWanna from the Royal Cork YC managed to overcome a few “moments” that were plentiful in the class during the day to score a win and second place to take the lead in the class and holds a seven-point overall lead.

Thrills'n'spills in the 1720 Europeans Photo: Bob Bateman

Meanwhile, in the continuing family battle for the lead in the 1720 European Championship, first placed Anthony O’Leary saw his lead stripped back to one point after a three-race day in which his Olympian son Peter narrowly miss drawing level for the lead. With half the series left to sail, the match could end either way as the breezy conditions are proving challenging for many of the other boats in the ten-strong fleet.

There were ideal sailing conditions off Kinsale today for the second day of the O'Leary Life Sovereign's Cup. 

Medium to heavy winds and sunshine delivered another racing programme, mostly incident-free. A turnout of 98 boats from around Ireland and further afield will enjoy two more days of racing for the Sovereign's Cup trophy, awarded to the best overall performance on IRC handicap. See Day Two Report here.

Bob Bateman captured the action today below: 

Rob McConnell’s Fool’s Gold from Waterford Harbour Sailing Club won both races of the first day of the O'Leary Life Sovereign's Cup in Division One, the largest fleet in the event with 18 entries, a result only matched elsewhere in the 98–boat fleet in the White Sails Division 2 fleet where Stephanie Ennis’ Club Shamrock Demelza also had two wins.

See Bob Bateman's full day one photo gallery here. Overall results are here.

At the Kinsale Yacht Club venue, fog gave way to light winds, broken sunshine and flat seas to allow for a full programme of yesterday's opening day races to be sailed on four course areas. At stake is the Sovereigns Cup for the best performing boat on IRC handicap alongside the Portcullis Trophy for the best boat on Progressive ECHO handicap.

Demelza leads in the White Sails class at the Sovereigns Cup Photo: Bob Bateman

Rob McConnell's Fools Gold scored two wins at the Sovereigns Cup off Kinsale Photo: Bob Bateman

At this early stage, few of the nine divisions racing have clear leaders and with the prospect of fresh to strong winds for the next two days, a full test in all conditions is likely to bring the final results down to the wire for Saturday’s finale. Afloat.ie has stuck its neck out and offered its predictions on the overall results here.

Howth Yacht Club's 'The Big Picture' is lying in joint first place in Class Two. Photo: Bob Bateman

In Division 2, the second largest fleet on the course, the top three boats are within one point of each other while the chasing pack aren’t lagging too far behind either. Kieran Collins’ Coracle IV leads after winning the opening race before placing fifth in the second and lies level with Howth’s Richard Evans on The Big Picture.

A fleet of six Half Tonners at the Sovereigns Cup is making class two very competitive Photo: Bob Bateman

“It’s a very competitive class, especially with six or seven half-tonners,” said Finbarr O’Regan, skipper of Artful Dodger of Kinsale YC. “There isn’t a bad boat in the class and it’s definitely going to a high-scoring event - a lot of people have had a good and a bad race.”

George Sisk's Wow, a former ICRA Boat of the Year, is competing in the coastal class. Photo: Bob Bateman

Although George Sisk’s Wow! from the Royal Irish Yacht Club led the Coastal Class fleet from the start, the Dun Laoghaire crew was unable to shake off the chasing pack and a finishing-line error ensured that Conor Doyle’s Freya took the first result of the series.

The opening day was shorter than the remainder of the series and the coastal course was more of an extended round the cans style race but with the full schedule planned for Thursday, a much longer course can be expected – dependent on weather.

The 1720 Sportsboat European Championships is being sailed as part of the Sovereign's Cup Photo: Bob Bateman

In the 1720 Sportsboat European Championships that is being sailed as part of the main regatta, a luffing match between father and son in race one saw Olympic sailor Peter O’Leary defeat his father Anthony to take first place. However, O’Leary senior was the more consistent over the three races and is the clear overnight leader.

In turn, the younger O’Leary holds second overall but only on tie-break from Tom Durcan’s T-Bone on level points. Ben Cooke’s Smile n ‘Wave doing well in the final race until they were inadvertently sailed off the course by another boat struggling to drop their kite and slipped down the rankings. Like Peter O’Leary, Cooke is counting a ninth place so far.

Sunsine and wind greeted competitors for the first day of the O'Leary Life Sovereign's Cup today off Kinsale. A fleet of approximately 100 boats are in Kinsale for the four day regatta that started this afternoon.

Scroll down for our photos by Bob Bateman below

With about 100–boats entered for the first races of O'Leary Life & Pensions Sovereigns Cup this afternoon, there are plenty of good boats capable of winning in each class in Kinsale's biennial Grand Prix Regatta.

Sticking its neck out, here are Afloat's class predictions for overall wins by Saturday.

ICRA Class Zero Champion Dark Angel from Swansea Photo: Bob Bateman

Johnny Mordaunt's Mat design from the Solent in today's first race of the Sovereign's Cup.  This is the latest Mark Mills Design MAT1180 Tschuss, originally from the US.Photo: Bob Bateman

Class 0 Only 4 boats in this class. Johnny Mordaunt's Mat design from the Solent has chosen to miss the UK IRC Nationals starting today and instead compete in Kinsale. He should be favourite but expect to see ICRA Class Zero Champion Dark Angel from Swansea also in the mix.

Tim Goodbody's J109 White Mischief from the Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dublin. Photo: Bob Bateman

Today's Class One start at the Sovereigns Cup. Photo Bob Bateman

Class One 10 J109's are entered including Joker II, recently crowned ICRA champion for the third successive year. However with Joker's normal tactician Mark Mansfield not sailing on her this week, some might expect to see Pat Kelly's Scottish Series Champion Storm from Rush Sailing Club right up there, particularly in the windier conditions. Rob McConnell's Fools Gold will also be in contention as will Tim Goodbody's White Mischief. In a likely mixed wind regatta, we will put our money on Fools Gold by a hair.

Nigel Biggs newly renovated Checkmate XVIII made its Irish debut today at Kinsale. Photo: Bob Bateman

Mike and Richard Evans Half Tonner Big Picture from Howth Yacht Club. Photo: Bob Bateman

Class Two includes a very broad range of boats including 5 half tonners working up towards the half ton worlds in August. It includes Nigel Biggs newly renovated Checkmate XVIII.  In the lighter early week conditions the half tonners should have the edge and Mike and Richard Evans Big Picture, with Mark Mansfield as tactician should find the conditions to their liking but Harmony owned by Johnny Swann and Dave Cullen's Checkmate will have something to say about this. In heavier conditions, later in the week, Ross McDonald's Equinox should be to the fore. Overall, in the likely two days of lighter winds and two windier days, expect one of the half tonners to shade it and watch out for the newly launched Checkmate XVIII. He rarely finishes far down the pecking order.

X302 Dux from Howth

Class Three Not a large class and expect one of the X302s to take this, likely Dux from Howth Yacht Club.

Class Four Will likely go to a quarter Tonner with three entered including Anchor Challenge recently crowned ICRA class 3 champion. In this event she is being sailed by Dave Dwyer and not her normal crew but she will be potent in lighter airs. Ken Lawless in Cartoon from Dublin Bay Sailing Club may just shade it however in mixed conditions.

Anthony O'Leary competing in the 1720 Wet'n'Ready in today's first Sovereign's Cup race. Photo: Bob Bateman

1720 class –12 entered. This is the class European Championships. Expect an O'Leary (either Anthony or Peter) to take this.  Peter is likely to have the edge in the lighter early week conditions and Anthony in the windier stuff. Expect Peter to hold out and take it by a slim margin.

See Day One Photo Gallery here

The biennial O’Leary Life & Pensions Sovereigns Cup to be sailed at Kinsale on June 21st has extended today’s entry deadline until next week.

Regatta organiser Mike Walsh has confirmed a 91–boat entry so far for the popular four–day south coast event. The deadline extension should see the regatta top 100–boats, especially as the Dun Laoghaire–Dingle offshore race has attracted a large fleet of 45 that will finish on the south-west coast a week before the Sovereign's Cup begins.

A new Kinsale Yacht Club 'Family Boat Award' will be presented by the O'Leary Life and Pensions sponsors as part of the regatta.

Walsh recently signalled a later start time for the biennial event starting on June 21st. The first gun has been pushed back to 1355 hrs to make it easier for sailors travelling down to Kinsale on the Wednesday morning.