Some of Australia's best sailors are set to hit home waters this week as Sail Melbourne gets underway at the Royal Brighton Yacht Club, with Olympians, emerging talent and first-timers lining up across a strong multi-class fleet.

As one of Australia’s premier Olympic-class regattas, Sail Melbourne brings together athletes from the AST, Australian Sailing Squad (AS Squad), Australian Sailing Futures (ASF) and the wider community, offering a rare opportunity for our national squads to race at home.

This year's event also includes the 2025 Australian Para Sailing Championships, which is being run in conjunction with Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club over the same weekend. The 2.4mR class will be run at Sail Melbourne, with the Hansa 303 and Liberty classes competing in Perth.

With Melbourne’s famous unpredictable conditions looming, sailors are preparing for a full spectrum of challenges. The ILCA 6 fleet, racing as one fleet of men and women has attracted 53 entries, including a sizeable international contingent. Past ILCA 6 World Champions Emma Plasschaert (BEL) and Maria Erdi (HUN) headline a high-calibre field alongside competitors from the USA, Great Britain, Poland, New Zealand and Japan, marking it as one of the regatta’s standout fleets.

Olympic Champion Matt Wearn will also make his long-awaited return to racing in the ILCA 7, joining a strong domestic squad as he steps back onto the start line in Port Phillip’s testing conditions.

There are strong contingents set to race across the development classes, with ILCA 4, 420, 29er, iQFOiL Youth and Optimist classes all brimming with Austrlaia's best young sailing talent.

iQFOiL Olympic silver medallist Grae Morris is eager to test himself in the shifting Melbourne breeze, “I am very excited to race at Sail Melbourne. It's a tricky venue, very unpredictable, and gives lots of opportunity to work on some tactical sailing. I’m excited to work on a few different things in a trickier place and enjoy being in Australia racing.”

With a strong New Zealand contingent making the trip across the ditch to join the Australians, Morris says the fleet energy will be electric.

“Racing is going to be amazing. We've got people of all levels, some doing their first event at this regatta, and a lot who have gone over to Europe this year for the first time, and everyone's kind of exploring their ranges, and I'm just excited to get on the start line with a bunch of Aussie flags, and see how everyone's improving.”

49erFX sailor Laura Harding is returning to a venue that played a major role in her early development, as she hits her home waters as 2025 Victorian Female Sailor of the Year.

“I learned how to sail the 49erFX here,” said Harding. “Snapped a rig in the past so I've learned my lesson where to capsize and where not to but it's so nice to be back in Brighton. The sun's come out for the event so super excited.”

Harding knows better than most that Port Phillip can throw anything at the fleet. “We can get every condition here,” explained Harding. “You can get some flat choppy Northerlies off the city, you can get some massive sea breezes in the South Wester, hoping for a little bit of carnage on the first day with the Westerly and some waves, so we'll see how that goes with the fleet in the moment”

Sail Melbourne runs from Thursday 27 November to Sunday 30 November, with invited classes joining Olympic classes to create a vibrant showcase of elite racing and grassroots participation on Aussie waters.

Follow the regatta here https://www.sailmelbourne.com.au/