Australian 16ft and 13ft Skiff Championships

The 16-foot and 13-foot skiffs are among the most exciting boats in Australian sailing — fast, powerful racing skiffs with a history stretching back a century. Their national championships, run by the Australian Skiff Sailing Association, bring together big fleets of these high-performance boats, and carry a heritage that predates almost every other class on the water.

What they are

A 16-foot skiff is a fast, powerful three-person racing skiff — a smaller cousin of the famous 18-foot skiffs — sailed with a crew hiking out on trapezes to hold the boat down beneath a big sail plan. The 13-foot skiff is a smaller sibling. Both are thrilling, physical boats that plane at high speed and demand total commitment, sitting at the sharp end of the range of sailboat types. The class is especially strong in New South Wales.

A century of history

The skiffs are among Australia's oldest racing classes. The first Australian 16-foot carnival was held in Perth in the 1925–26 season, with skiffs travelling from New South Wales and Queensland to compete. The class evolved steadily: the trapeze was approved in the late 1950s, transforming how the boats were sailed, and a three-person crew was formally adopted in 1986. That long, colourful history is part of what makes the class so distinctive.

How to follow

Results and event information are published by the Australian Skiff Sailing Association. Recent championships have been hosted by the Belmont 16s Sailing Club on Lake Macquarie, drawing fleets from around the country each January. For the wider New South Wales scene, see our guide to sailing in Sydney and Sydney Harbour, and the sailing terms glossary for the language of the racing.