International Moth Australian Championship
The International Moth is the fastest sailing dinghy in the world — a foiling development class that flies clear of the water. Its Australian Championship draws the country's best foiling sailors, in a class Australians helped revolutionise.
Photo: Port of San Diego, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
2 min read
The International Moth is the fastest sailing dinghy in the world — a single-handed foiler that lifts clear of the water and flies on hydrofoils. Its Australian Championship gathers the country's best foiling sailors, in a class that Australians did much to revolutionise. Few boats capture the cutting edge of sailing like the Moth, and few championships are as spectacular.
What it is
The championship is the national title of the Moth class in Australia, run by the International Moth Class Association of Australia. Because the Moth is a foiling boat, the racing is a sight in itself — a fleet of boats flying above the surface at astonishing speed, their sailors perched out on wings. It is one of the purest expressions of modern high-performance sailing, and the Australian Championship draws a deep field.
A development class, not a one-design
Crucially, the Moth is a development class, not a strict one-design. Within a set of rules, sailors and builders are free to innovate — to design, refine and experiment. That freedom is exactly what made the Moth a laboratory for new ideas, and it is why the class, tiny as the boats are, has had an outsized influence on the whole sport. It sits at the very sharp end of the range of sailboat types.
The Australian foiling breakthrough
The Moth's place in history was sealed around the year 2000, when Australian builders — among them John Ilett and Brett Burvill — fitted lifting hydrofoils to their boats. The foils raised the hull and sailor clear of the water at speed, cutting drag dramatically, and the idea took off and reverberated across world sailing. The foiling revolution now seen everywhere, from the America's Cup down, traces a direct line back to those experiments. The Australian Moth had already been recognised as a national class in 1962 — the first small-boat class in Australia to earn that status — so the class's roots here run deep.
How to follow
Results and event information come through the International Moth Class Association of Australia. For anyone fascinated by foiling, the Moth is where it began in earnest, and its championships are compelling to watch. The sailing terms glossary covers the language, and our guide to America's Cup shows where foiling has since reached the pinnacle of the sport.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the International Moth Australian Championship?
- It is the national championship of the International Moth class in Australia, run by the International Moth Class Association of Australia. The Moth is a single-handed foiling dinghy — the fastest dinghy in the world — so the championship is a gathering of the country's best foiling sailors, racing boats that fly clear of the water on hydrofoils.
- What is an International Moth?
- The International Moth is a small single-handed development-class dinghy that, since around 2000, flies above the water on hydrofoils. Because it is a development class rather than a strict one-design, sailors and builders are free to innovate within the rules, which has made the Moth a hotbed of design and the fastest sailing dinghy in the world.
- How did Moths start foiling?
- Foiling Moths grew out of Australian innovation around the year 2000, when builders including John Ilett and Brett Burvill fitted lifting hydrofoils to their boats. The foils lift the hull and sailor clear of the water at speed, slashing drag. The idea took off and reverberated across world sailing, helping spark the foiling revolution now seen from the America's Cup down.
- Is the Moth an Australian class?
- The Moth has deep Australian roots. The Australian Moth was recognised as a national class in 1962 — the first small-boat class in Australia to be granted national status — and Australians drove the foiling breakthrough two decades ago. The class remains strong here, and Australian clubs have hosted its world championships.
- Why is the Moth so fast?
- Because it foils. Lifting hydrofoils raise the hull completely clear of the water at speed, so the only things in the water are the slim foils and rudder. With almost no hull drag, a Moth accelerates and reaches speeds far beyond what a conventional dinghy of its size could manage, which is why it is the fastest sailing dinghy in the world.
More regattas
Australian Yachting Championships
The Australian Yachting Championships is a national keelboat title decided on handicap at a rotating host venue under Australian Sailing each year.
Read the guideJJ Giltinan 18ft Skiff Championship
The JJ Giltinan Championship is the world championship of 18-foot skiffs — the fastest, most spectacular skiffs in sailing — held on Sydney Harbour since 1938 and run by the Australian 18 Footers League.
Read the guideSAILING Champions League (Australia)
The SAILING Champions League is Australia's club-versus-club national championship — short, sharp stadium-format racing in identical one-design keelboats, with clubs battling through state leagues to a national final and on to the Asia-Pacific and world stage.
Read the guide