Poles on the podium at the DN European Ice Sailing Championships!

From February 23 to 27, the DN European Ice Sailing Championships took place on Lake Pyhäjärvi in Finland. A total of 121 competitors from 15 countries participated, including 30 sailors from Poland. After a fierce battle, Michał Burczyński (AZS UWM Olsztyn) secured the silver medal, while Łukasz Zakrzewski (MKŻ Mikołajki) claimed the bronze. The gold medal went to Estonia's Rasmus Maalinn, who dominated the competition, winning seven out of twelve races.

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28 february 2025 | 17:38 | Source: Gazeta Morska | Prepared by: Kamil Kusier | Print

fot. Rola Lora / Polski Związek Żeglarski

Challenging ice conditions

The regatta took place under demanding weather conditions. Both organizers and competitors had to contend with unpredictable weather, which disrupted training plans as early as Saturday. Fog, rain, and temperatures around freezing made ice sailing impossible. Fortunately, from Sunday onward, conditions improved enough to allow the competition to proceed as scheduled.

- The regatta was very interesting, although it took place in a slightly different format than usual. We typically race seven times, but this time there were twelve races. To my surprise, all of them were completed, which was truly impressive given the conditions. This event will certainly be remembered as one of the toughest ever – it could even be called an 'ugly' regatta. We were practically wading through water, as the ice was wet and soaked for five or even six days. It rained constantly, and the water wouldn’t drain away, leaving us soaked the entire time, said Michał Burczyński.

Poles among the leaders

On the first day of racing, Karol Jabłoński (Olsztyn Sailing Club) made an impressive start, winning the first race and securing second place in the next, making him the leader after the opening day. However, from Monday onwards, Rasmus Maalinn took control and steadily built his lead, winning seven races and finishing second three times.

Michał Burczyński, after a slightly weaker start, managed to recover and consistently finish among the leaders. He won four races, placed second three times, and ultimately secured his eighth European Championship silver medal. This achievement ties him with Karol Jabłoński for the most European Championship medals (15 in total: 5 gold, 8 silver, 2 bronze).

- I must admit, this regatta was tough. I could have performed better, but I wasn’t as well-prepared as I was last year for the World and European Championships. Back then, I had at least 20 training days on the ice, whereas this time, I arrived fresh. Work and family life took priority – I became a father for the second time and had many responsibilities. Ice sailing took a back seat, which makes me even happier with the silver medal, Michał Burczyński reflected.

The bronze medal went to Łukasz Zakrzewski, who repeated his result from last year. Tomasz Zakrzewski (Łukasz’s brother, also from MKŻ Mikołajki) finished in fourth place. Other Polish sailors in the top ten included Maciej Żarnowski (7th place, UKS Navigo Sopot), Robert Graczyk (9th place, MKŻ Mikołajki), and Jarosław Radzki (10th place, Olsztyn Sailing Club). Karol Jabłoński ultimately withdrew from the competition due to equipment damage but won the 60+ category.

A new era for ice sailing

For the first time in history, the competition was available for live tracking via GPS in the Gold Fleet. Additionally, the European Championships included the European Cup, where results from the final five races counted. In this classification, the top two positions went to Rasmus Maalinn and Michał Burczyński, with Robert Graczyk finishing third.

The final results of the DN European Championships confirmed Maalinn’s dominance, but the Polish sailors demonstrated their strength, proving once again that ice sailing remains one of Poland’s strongest disciplines in winter sailing.