JJ 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. Few events pack as much drama into a stretch of water: overpowered boats, huge sails, and crews hanging off wings at full noise, all close to the shore of one of the world's great harbours.

What it is

The Giltinan is regarded as the premier 18-footer event in the world, effectively the class's world championship. It draws the best crews from Australia and overseas, and racing on Sydney Harbour — close inshore, against the city backdrop — makes it a genuine spectacle. It is typically sailed in the late summer, around February and March. As a strict one-design class in spirit, with tightly matched boats, the racing comes down to crew skill and nerve.

What is an 18-foot skiff?

An 18-foot skiff is an extreme high-performance sailing dinghy — one of the most demanding boats in the sport. Light and wildly overpowered, carrying enormous sail area and sailed by a crew of three hiking out on wings, they plane at high speed and take real courage to sail well. They sit at the far end of the range of sailboat types, a world away from a cruising yacht — pure, unfiltered speed.

History

The championship began in 1938, planned by JJ Giltinan to coincide with Sydney's 150th anniversary. Invitations went out worldwide; unsettled conditions in Europe meant only the New Zealanders could travel, but their three boats helped make a fleet of 20 for that first regatta, won by Taree. From that start the Giltinan has been the event every 18-footer sailor wants to win, and it remains a fixture of the Sydney Harbour summer.

Following the racing

The championship is run by the Australian 18 Footers League, which stages a full season of harbour racing leading up to it. For spectators, the harbour offers superb vantage points, and the League's spectator ferries put you right in the action — part of the racing scene described in our guide to sailing in Sydney and Sydney Harbour. For the language of the racing, see the sailing terms glossary.