The 2026 49er and 49erFX Junior European Championships got underway at Vilamoura Sailing this week, bringing together 49 boats, 98 sailors and 26 coaches from 17 countries.
Wednesday was supposed to be the first day of racing, but Storm Charles is moving onto mainland Portugal, and government restrictions put in place because of the storm mean no sailing was allowed.
The sea state warning for the Algarve coast is at orange from midday until 21:00, and IPMA expects the unsettled weather to last until at least Friday.
The 49er fleet has 33 teams, with Italy bringing the most boats (eight), followed by Germany (six) and Switzerland (five). The 49erFX fleet has 14 teams from 12 nations, including crews from Japan, Puerto Rico and the host nation Portugal. Other nations represented include Austria, Canada, Finland, France, Great Britain, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Poland and Slovenia.
The program now moves to Thursday, with three races scheduled for each of the remaining days. Briefing and start times will be confirmed by the race committee depending on conditions.