470

Master’s Cup One Race and Two Storms Hit Portorož

By Sailing Times Newsroom·19 September 2026·3 min read

PORTOROŽ, SLOVENIA — The third day of the 470 Open European Trophy & Master’s Cup 2026 in Portorož was shaped by heavy rain, unstable winds and two thunderstorms, leaving the fleet with just one completed race.

The fleet had been scheduled to start racing at 13:30, but competitors were forced to wait as thunderstorms moved through the area. With the weather constantly changing, the Race Committee eventually managed to establish a course and complete a single race in light and highly variable conditions.

“It was quite a tricky day,” said Race Officer Bojan Gale, who explained that the team had been closely monitoring the forecast since the previous evening.

“Already yesterday evening, we were studying the weather forecast a lot because two thunderstorms were scheduled to pass through this morning. I think we managed to get the timing quite right.”

The fleet was able to leave the harbour at around 13:00, ahead of the planned first warning.

“We were scheduled to have the first warning at 13:30, and at one o’clock we were able to go out, so we missed it a little bit. After going out, we were expecting some north-easterly wind and we had everything except north-easterly today.”

One Race After a Long Wait

Once on the water, establishing a stable race course proved difficult.

The first attempt had to be abandoned after the wind shifted by approximately 60 degrees. The Race Committee made a second attempt around 15–20 minutes later, successfully laying the course and getting the race underway.

“Strange northerly wind established. We tried once to set up the course, but the wind shifted by 60 degrees, so we abandoned it. We tried again 15 or 20 minutes later, and this time it was successful. We managed to do one race.”

The race itself provided another demanding test for the crews, with significant shifts throughout the course and little room for error.

“It was a really, really tricky race. Probably some crews were very happy, and probably some were really unhappy if they missed the shifts. On the second wind shift, it was really painful for them. But this is sailing,” Gale added.

Kocijančič and Planinšič Take the Win

Marko Kocijančič and Željko Planinšič won the only race of the day, moving up to seventh overall in the 470 Open European Trophy & Master’s Cup standings.

Italy’s Ivica Bonacin and Luca Falcioni finished second. Their strong result lifted them to third overall in the 470 Open European Trophy.

At the top of the overall standings, Julian Flessati and Stephan Ammann of Switzerland remain in control.

The Swiss pair finished fourth in today’s race but retained the overall lead with a 10-point advantage over Slovenia’s Dušan Puh and Matjaž Puh.

Dušan Puh, one of the oldest sailors in the fleet, is competing alongside his son Matjaž.

Masters Categories

Swiss crews continue to lead the Apprentice Masters category.

In the Grand Grand Masters, Ivica Bonacin and Luca Falcioni hold the lead, while Dušan and Matjaž Puh remain at the top of the Grand Masters.

The Masters category is led by Miran Gustin and Ela Žagar.

Final Day Awaits

Friday has been scheduled as a reserve day, giving both the competitors and Race Committee an opportunity to recover before the final day of racing on Saturday.

With weather already playing a decisive role throughout the regatta, the final day in Portorož is expected to provide another demanding test for the experienced 470 crews as the championship reaches its conclusion.