The second Sailing Grand Slam of the 2026 season heads to Hyères, France, this week, with the French Olympic Week regatta set to welcome hundreds of sailors from more than 50 nations across all 10 Olympic classes. Australia will be strongly represented, with 43 entries preparing to take to the start line. 

A fixture on the international calendar for more than half a century, French Olympic Week is one of the sport’s most respected testing grounds. Set on the Bay of Hyères in the Mediterranean, the regatta is renowned for its range of conditions from the powerful Mistral and strong easterly winds to light seabreezes, with this week expected to deliver a bit of everything. 

Fresh off his victory at the opening Sailing Grand Slam in Spain, double Olympic Champion Matt Wearn will be one to watch as he lines up against a 136-boat ILCA7 fleet. 

“It’s looking like we are expecting a classic Hyères with a bit of everything on the forecast,” shared Wearn. “It will be a great test for those that can master every condition.” 

“As always in the ILCA the fleet is about as competitive as you can get. All the main protagonists are here and ready to fight as well as plenty of younger guys looking to show their worth, so it’s going to be a tough week of racing.” 

The regatta marks another important step early in the LA 2028 cycle, building on momentum from the season opener in Palma and offering a fresh benchmark across the fleet. 

Australian Sailing High Performance Director Iain Brambell said this regatta provides a valuable opportunity to measure progress in a high-quality international field. 

“We’ve seen some strong early indicators across the team this season, particularly in terms of depth and consistency, and this week gives us another chance to assess that across a full range of conditions,” he said. 

“At this stage, it’s about continuing to build and actively progressing the learnings from Palma. Pushing towards repeatable podium performances, exposing athletes to the intricacies of decision making under pressure, refining execution, and making sure we’re progressively tracking in an upward direction as the cycle unfolds.” 

With world-class competition and a racecourse known to challenge sailors, French Olympic Week will provide another key test for the Australian Sailing Team on the road to LA 2028. 

Racing gets underway on 20 April and runs through to the weekend. The board classes (iQFOiL and Formula Kite) will contest their Finals Series on 24 April, with the remaining boat classes to decide medals on 25 April. 

New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) scholarship holders will be in action in the following classes:

ILCA 6 
Evie Saunders

ILCA 7 
Alexander Bijkerk
Julian Taylor

iQFOiL – Men 
Grae Morris
Matthew Quinlan 

Nacra 17 
Brin Liddell / Rhiannan Brown
Ruben Booth / Rita Booth 
Archie Gargett / Sarah Hoffman 
Jake Liddell (NSWIS) / Niamh Meehan

49er
Jack Ferguson / Jack Hilderbrand
Otto Henry / Shaun Connor
Harry Price / Max Paul
Kurt Hansen / Charlie Zeeman
Daniel Links / Keizo Tomishima 

49erFX 
Laura Harding (NSWIS) / Annie Wilmot
Brooke Wilson / Evie Haseldine (NSWIS)

470 
Sophie Jackson / Austin Cross (NSWIS)

Featured Image: Sailing Energy

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