From June 18 to 20, we co-organized alongside J/Composites, Axe Sail, and Key Yachting the J Cup Europe 2026, which also hosted the J/99 European Cup. This event concluded in Cherbourg with a particularly positive outcome. For 3 days, crews from several European countries (France, England, and the Netherlands in particular) shared an event marked by conviviality, sportsmanship, and good humor, in an atmosphere unanimously praised by participants.

The weather provided a particularly pleasant setting throughout these 3 days, with bright sunshine and agreeable summer temperatures. Although the wind was light, it nevertheless made the races particularly technical. Crews had to contend with demanding tactical conditions, where reading currents, seeking out gusts, and precise maneuvers made all the difference. Despite these light conditions, the race committee managed to offer a quality sporting program, alternating coastal courses and windward-leeward courses, both in front of the port of Becquet and in Cherbourg harbor.

Beyond the sporting aspect, this first edition in Cherbourg confirms the city’s tremendous potential for hosting major European fleet racing events. Thanks to the mobilization of the teams from the Yacht Club de Cherbourg, Axe Sail, and the City of Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, the organization was unanimously praised by participants, both for its quality and its friendly atmosphere. These excellent reviews encourage the organizers in their desire to perpetuate the event and to start working on a second edition immediately. This edition fully achieved its objective: to bring together the European J/Boats community around a sporting and festive event.