Congratulations to the 2025 Championship of Champions, Germany’s ILCA 7 sailors Philipp Buhl and Justin Barth, sailing in the 44th Championship of Champions on Hamburg’s Outer Alster Lake, Germany.
In hot pursuit of the winners were the J70 team – Maximilian Nickel, Laurenz Odenbreit, Charlotte Graffunder in 2nd and 3rd place, the J22 Inclusive Sailing team – Silke Basedow, Juliane Zepp, Maren Hahlbrock
This regatta brings together German Champions from different sailing classes, and this year it was sailed in VX One’s for the first time. Justin Barth commented on the choice of boat for the regatta –
“The choice of VX One boats proved to be a resounding success at this Championship of Champions. The agile racers were excellent boats, offering a high fun factor for the diverse field of competitors from both dinghy and keelboat classes. Philipp Buhl commented: “A huge compliment to the boats and the organizers. We had the most unpleasant weather, but the most enjoyable weekend. I also really appreciated the friendly atmosphere.” Justin Barth
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To find out more about the regatta, visit Championship of Champions 2025 Regatta Review by Yacht
Here is the English Translation from Yacht :
The weather left much to be desired at the 44th Championship of Champions on Hamburg’s Outer Alster Lake. That the classic regatta still brought joy to its 23 participating crews was thanks to the tremendous dedication of the VX One Class Association and the hosts from the Hamburg Sailing Club. The favorites emerged victorious, even though the win was by no means certain until the very last race and was ultimately boosted by a gust of wind blowing off the Alster.
Philipp Buhl and Justin Barth are the champions of the 44th Championship of Champions. The Laser world champion and his crewmate, Ilca 7 teammate and roommate Justin Barth, won the championship regatta on Hamburg’s Outer Alster Lake in a last-minute sprint finish. “We were the lucky ones,” Philipp Buhl concluded that evening after a rainy and very wet weekend in Hamburg. Nevertheless, it made all 67 sailors happy.
Championship of Champions: Sports fun with VX Ones
Twenty-three German champions from various classes, as well as podium finishers at World and European Championships, gathered at the Hamburg Sailing Club for the 44th edition of the German autumn classic. For the first time, the season finale, previously held on Pirates but also on J/70s, B Ones, and RS Venture Connects, was contested on VX One keel skiffs. The boats were very well received by the participants of this championship of champions. Here is an older YACHT test that introduces the boats.
The sporting spectacle of the championship was made possible by the highly dedicated VX One Class Association, led by its chairwoman Iris Kamml, and private owners from all over Germany who provided their boats for the championship weekend. “It’s truly fantastic what the VX One Class Association accomplished here. They provided, assembled, and repaired the boats. Their commitment was incredible!” exclaimed Silke Basedow, among others, praising the extraordinary effort at this championship of champions.
The top sailor from Hamburg summed it up: “It was cold, wet, exhausting – fantastic!” Philipp Buhl was equally enthusiastic: “That there are still people like the VX One owners these days is incredible! The volunteer work here was also amazing. Our thanks go to the organizers and the people who shuttled us, who sat on the motorboats for two days and froze their fingers off.”
A huge compliment for the boats and the event in general. The fact that the Championship of Champions has already been held 44 times is fantastic!” Philipp Buhl
It was primarily the high-performance boats that lured the 35-year-old German Ilca-7 champion and three-time Olympian back to the Masters’ Championship on the Outer Alster Lake after a long break. Like only one other team in the field, Buhl tackled the challenge as a duo with Justin Barth, rather than in a three-person boat like the majority of the crews.
“Berliners” dominate in the main round
“We got the hang of it, but being a crew of two wasn’t always an advantage in that wind. Downwind, though, it was…,” said the helmsman, who sails for the North German Regatta Association and the Alpsee-Immenstadt Sailing Club. Philipp Buhl and Justin Barth finished fourth in the main round of the Masters Championship.
The most commanding performance across seven main round flights was delivered by the J/70 champions Maximilian Nickel, Laurenz Odenbreit, and Charlotte Graffunder from the Berlin Yacht Club. With six wins (one of which was awarded as an average due to the cancellation of the last fleet race in stormy Sunday conditions) and a second-place finish, the Berliners advanced to the final as the dominant leaders.
The Hamburg trio of Silke Basedow, Juliane Zepp, and Maren Hahlbrock, who were considered co-favorites, also reached the decisive race. The HSC trio, who also sail for the club Wir sind Wir – Inclusion in Sailing, qualified for the final as third-place finishers in the main round, behind the Pirate European Championship runners-up Stefan, Nils, and Cora Theuerkauf. Philipp Buhl and Justin Barth qualified for the final race in fourth place. Although the duo had also sailed to three wins in seven races, they had lost some ground on Sunday morning while on course for the final.
The final reckoning will be at the end.
Justin Barth said: “On Saturday, things went better for us as the winds decreased in the afternoon. In the stronger winds on Sunday, we were also a bit more cautious with the gennaker than the other teams. This cost us a little bit here and there at the leeward mark, which made the races a bit more difficult for us.”
Silke Basedow suspected early on what the Ilca duo excelled at: “You just have to hang on tight on the cross-bank…” The old adage also held true at this championship of champions: the race is over. In the decisive race, the crews ahead of Buhl and Barth in the standings focused their attention on each other.
The Ilca double got off to a good start and reached the Luvtonen in third position. “Then we were a bit lucky to be the only ones to get a huge gust of wind, so we had what felt like a half-leg lead at the gate.” This burst of speed was enough for the race win – and the event victory.
Close title decision: top three teams tied on points
Because the pursuers finished in such a way that the points carried over from the main round and the points sailed in the final resulted in a tie among the top three, Philipp Buhl and Justin Barth as Team “Overpowered” won the 44th Championship of Champions ahead of the “Bärliners” and the women’s trio around Silke Basedew.
The deciding factor was the performance in the final. Justin Barth, referring to the overall performance of the three podium crews, said: “I think the Berliners only achieved first places and deserved the victory. Likewise, Silke, who took a few more points off us on Sunday.”
“There was a huge element of luck involved that it turned out exactly like this for us in the final. But of course we’re delighted.” Justin Barth
Like other participants, Justin Barth also returned a VX One to its owner at his home yacht club in Berlin the evening after the final. The 24-year-old Berliner, who lives in Kiel, said: “The organization of the VX One class was so impressive. There’s no compensation for their dedication. And the boats were really cool! It was just like sailing a Laser. Especially when we didn’t have the gennaker up, we were planing hard in the strong gusts.”
Agile racers with a high fun factor
The choice of VX One boats proved to be a resounding success at this Championship of Champions. The agile racers were excellent boats, offering a high fun factor for the diverse field of competitors from both dinghy and keelboat classes. Philipp Buhl commented: “A huge compliment to the boats and the organizers. We had the most unpleasant weather, but the most enjoyable weekend. I also really appreciated the friendly atmosphere.”
The 35-year-old top sailor has fond memories of his experience with the VX Ones: “We were really excited when we shot over the downwind layline, then had to really sharpen the bank and the boat took off.” Philipp Buhl also has a suggestion for future final races at the Championship of Champions: “Perhaps it could be improved by making the final a three-race event with eliminations, if there’s enough time.”
Despite Hamburg’s dreary weather this weekend, the relaxed atmosphere among the sailors, both on and off the water, contributed to the cheerful mood. Under the expert race management of Tina Buch and her team, the hosts, led by HSC Vice President Wolf-Dieter Jahn, expertly managed the championship weekend. Chief Umpire Manuel Hünsch commented: “The weather was really challenging, but we managed to complete almost seven flights and the final. From an umpire’s perspective, there was relatively little work to do.”
