Australian Tasar Championship

The Australian Tasar Championship is the national title of one of the world's most popular two-handed dinghies — the Tasar, designed by the celebrated Australian Frank Bethwaite. A simple, tactical, lively boat, the Tasar has a devoted following, and its national championship has now passed the fifty-year milestone, a mark of a class in genuinely good health.

What it is

The championship is a national one-design regatta that rotates between clubs around the country. The 50th Australian Tasar Championship was held at Mandurah in Western Australia in 2025, with the following edition hosted by the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron in Brisbane — a reflection of how the class travels and how strong its fleets are across several states.

What is a Tasar?

The Tasar is a two-person one-design dinghy with a deliberate philosophy: it is sailed without a spinnaker or trapeze, which strips the racing back to tactics, boat-handling and crew work rather than athletic hiking. That makes it fast but accessible — rewarding skill over strength — and it is a large part of why the class is so popular worldwide. It sits among the classic performance dinghies in the range of sailboat types.

Frank Bethwaite's legacy

The Tasar carries a distinguished pedigree. Its designer, Frank Bethwaite, was one of Australia's most influential sailing designers and thinkers, and his family went on to shape high-performance Olympic classes such as the 49er and 29er. The Tasar embodies his belief in a boat that is quick and rewarding but open to ordinary sailors — a philosophy that has kept the class thriving for half a century.

How to follow

Results and event information are published by the Tasar class association. For newcomers, the Tasar's simplicity makes it an appealing way into performance dinghy sailing — see our guide to getting into sailing in Australia. The sailing terms glossary covers the language of the racing.