Polish Sailing Awards 2025 presented in Gdańsk
The 56th edition of the Polish "Rejs Roku" (Voyage of the Year) awards ceremony took place at the Gdańsk Shakespeare Theatre, gathering representatives of the Polish offshore sailing community. This year, the jury decided not to award the main trophy – the prestigious Silver Sextant - marking only the third time in the history of the competition that the top prize has not been granted.
In brief
The Rejs Roku competition jury did not award the main prize, the Silver Sextant, for the 2025 season, which happened for only the third time in history, previously in 1970 and 2020. During the 56th Rejs Roku Awards Gala at the Gdańsk Shakespeare Theatre, captains Marcin Dobrowolski and Adam Walczukiewicz were honoured for legs of the voyage of the yacht s/y Generał Zaruski from Gdańsk to Spitsbergen. Zbigniew Gutkowski won the ORC1 class at the 14th edition of the Round Hainan Regatta. Jury chairman Rear Admiral (lower half) Czesław Dyrcz explained that voyages still under way were not awarded.
The ceremony is traditionally held on the first Friday of March to commemorate the historic passage around Cape Horn under the Polish flag by the sailing ship Dar Pomorza in March 1937.
According to the jury, many ambitious Polish sailing projects were launched in 2025, but a significant number of them are still underway. For that reason, the jury decided to evaluate them only after their completion.
Arctic expeditions dominate the season
Expeditions to Spitsbergen became one of the defining trends of the past sailing season in Poland.
The award in the Education and Promotion of Sailing category went to the Generał Zaruski 2025 project - an innovative educational and research programme conducted during the tall ship’s voyage to Spitsbergen.
In the Sea Voyages and Expeditions category, captains Marcin Dobrowolski and Adam Walczukiewicz were recognised for leading successive stages of the expedition aboard the sailing vessel Generał Zaruski from Gdańsk to Spitsbergen. The voyage included exploration of the archipelago, a circumnavigation of the island, a stop at Bear Island and visits to several Norwegian ports.
A special distinction in the same category was awarded to Captain Eugeniusz Moczydłowski for his solo voyage aboard the yacht Magnus Zaremba from the Polish Baltic coast to Spitsbergen.
Polish skipper wins Pacific regatta
In the Regattas and Sailing Records category, the award went to Zbigniew Gutkowski, who won the ORC1 class in the 14th edition of the Round Hainan Regatta in China and placed third overall sailing an Oceanis 54 yacht.
Lifetime achievement and special awards
The jury also honoured Captain Jerzy Jaszczuk with a lifetime achievement award in offshore sailing. A special recognition for long-term contributions to the promotion of sailing was presented to Captain Janusz Maderski.
The Amber Wind Rose, a special award granted by the Mayor of Gdańsk, was presented to Captain Piotr Królak for his long-standing involvement in the city’s maritime education programme centred around the sailing vessel Generał Zaruski.
Additional special awards were presented by the Polish Yachting Association, the Brotherhood of Cape Horners and the sailing media.
Source: Gazeta Morska · Compiled by: Kamil Kusier
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