The Royal Langkawi Yacht Club recently welcomed sailing crews from around the world to compete in the beautiful waters off Langkawi during the 17th Royal Langkawi International Regatta.

A flotilla of 35 racing yachts took to the turquoise seas of Langkawi in January for the 17th edition of the Royal Langkawi International Regatta. Sailing crews from eight countries got in on the action this year – Australia, the United Kingdom, Russia, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Thailand, and the United States of America. Check out the short video we shot!

Of course, one element of unpredictability with any regatta is the winds; after all, you can’t have a good sailing race without good winds. This year, Aeolus – that’s the Greek god and keeper of the winds for us landlubbers – delivered masterfully. Sailors enjoyed stiff winds and only a light chop on the water, enabling a number of regatta records to be challenged or broken. The crews competed in seven different categories, including Racing Class, IRC 1, IRC 2, Sports boat, Club Cruising, Multihull, and White Sail.

The Royal Langkawi International Regatta (RLIR) was held this year from January 7 to 12, 2019, with the host, the award-winning Royal Langkawi Yacht Club (RYLC), also serving as the base of operations. The RYLC, under the steady hand of General Manager Tayfun Koksal, has really upped its game in recent years, with the opening of the popular Langkawi Yacht Club Hotel and the beautiful Fisherman’s Wharf, featuring not only a range of new facilities, but extensive refurbishment to the many extensive offerings at the seaside club.

One such offering had its grand launch coincide with this year’s regatta, and takes its place as Langkawi’s newest hospitality venue. The Trinidad Cigar Divan Langkawi was officially opened on January 11 with a launch event attended by dozens of supporters and cigar aficionados. Dato’ Indera Naresh Mohan, CEO of Trinidad Group, along with VIPs including Her Royal Highness Dato’ Seri DiRaja, Tan Sri Tunku Puteri Intan Safinaz Binti Almarhum Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah, Tunku Temenggong Kedah, YM Tunku Dato’ Yaacob Khyra, Commodore of the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club, and Her Excellency Ibete Fernandez Hernandez, Ambassador of the Republic of Cuba, officially opened the divan, which provides an intimate space for locals and Malaysian and international tourists to enjoy a cigar while enjoying breath-taking views of the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club marina and Kuah Harbour. (The divan stocks an array of Cuban and Nicaraguan cigars at duty-free prices.)

It was a welcome addition to a regatta that featured good competition, great weather, and successive days of outstanding conditions.

RLYC’s Tayfun Koksul also served as the Regatta Director for the RLIR and expressed his happiness at an entire week of favourable sailing conditions. “I am delighted that we had good winds throughout the week, without which, such exciting sailing would not have been possible,” he said. “This year’s regatta offered good exposure to new teams, and we had a 34% increase in teams that took part. This is encouraging, and we hope to organise another successful regatta in 2020 with even more sailing boats.” Mr. Koksul added that all teams did two rounds of races at Kuah Harbour.

In the end, it was Australia’s Team Hollywood crew that hoisted the coveted Prime Minister’s Challenge Trophy, under the Racing Class, as the clear winner. Having won all nine of the races in which they competed over five days of sailing, the Aussie team earned a decisive victory, with THA72 and Janda Baik placing second and third, respectively.

The full results and final standings of the 17th RLIR are as follows – and as in golf, a lower score is better!

 Racing Class (Prime Minister’s Challenge Trophy)

1. Team Hollywood, skippered by Ray Roberts, score of 9

2. THA72, skippered by Kevin Whitcraft, score of 17

3. SCS Janda Baik, skippered by Mohd Khairul and Shahril Zakaria, score of 31

LADA-IRC Challenge Trophy (IRC 1 class)

1. Mata Hari KL Registry, skippered by Vincent Chan, score of 14

2. MegaZip, skippered by Alexey Mashkin, score of 20

3. East Marine Emagine, skippered by Scott Noel Bradley, score of 25

RLIR-IRC Challenge Trophy (IRC 2 class)

1. APW Endeavour of Whitby, skippered by Stuart Williamson, score of 12

2. Phoenix, skippered by Niels Degenkolw, score of 17

3. The Blue Angel, skippered by Jeremy Camps, score of 25

Commodore’s Challenge Cup (Club Cruising class)

1. Marikh, skippered by Hasani Hassan, score of 12

2. VG Offshore, skippered by Rama Menon, score of 16

3. Iseulta, skippered by Tristram Denyer, score of 19

Langkawi Sports Trophy (Sportsboat class)

1. MSA Team, skippered by Muhd Uzzair Amin, score of 12

2. Navy 1, skippered by Harisfabillah Muhamat, score of 17

3. RSYC Team, skippered by Rizal Mahadi Sazli, score of 24

Malaysia Multihull Challenge Cup (Multihull class)

1. Fugazi, skippered by Dan Fidock, score of 12

2. Twin Sharks, skippered by John Newnham, score of 17

3. Allegro, skippered by Bob McIntyre, score of 25

White Sail

1. Chantique, skippered by A’dale Adham Ayahudin, score of 9

2. Eveline, skippered by Dato’ Richard Curtis, score of 15

3. Linda, skippered by Woodrow Jack Christensen, score of 17

Well done to Langkawi and the hardworking team at the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club for organising yet another successful edition of the RLIR, one of the region’s best and most successful international regattas, and the one that kicks off the yacht racing calendar here in Malaysia each January.