Ten-year-olds on the podium at the final: this is how inclusive regatta racing works

Heinz Kettler Germany Cup 2026 decided · Overall victory and day’s win in Belgium for the SALTO SAILING Team Norway · All crews compete in a single classification, with no separate classes · Fourth season held abroad for the first time · The series continues in 2027 at Möhnesee and in Sassnitz

Drafted: 20 September 2026, 4.00 pm

Bütgenbach/Hamburg, 20 September 2026. The SALTO SAILING Team Norway has won the 2026 Heinz Kettler Germany Cup and also claimed victory on the third day of racing at the final in Belgium. On the podium for this race day was a team featuring a ten-year-old sailor: Team Sophia finished third, behind the overall winner and the Alster HSC, whose crew included the bronze medallists from the 2026 Para European Championships. This is possible because, in this series, no one is categorised according to the nature of their disability: all crews sail the same boats, in the same races, and are included in the same results list.

The third race day in Bütgenbach was also the first in the series’ history to be held outside Germany – at the Royal Yacht Club Warche in East Belgium. In 2026, 21 teams from four nations were included in the overall standings.

One series, one results list

The races are sailed according to inclusion rules that were developed specifically for this inclusive regatta sport years ago. They are deliberately kept simple: at least one member of each crew must have a disability. There is no categorisation by type of disability, nor are there separate classes or separate rankings. Here, participation does not mean making allowances, but rather equal conditions – whoever wins has sailed the better races.

Since para-sailing was dropped from the Paralympic programme following the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio, the series has become one of the few platforms for ambitious inclusive regatta racing in Europe.

The fact that this model has an impact beyond regatta sailing was already evident on the Friday before the final: a school class from Bütgenbach was out on the lake for a trial sail – from the Optimist to the RS Venture Connect.

Day 3 of competition in Bütgenbach

Lake Bütgenbach did not make things easy for the crews: the wind shifted throughout the day, so no advantage ever lasted long. On Saturday, sailing took place from 10.30 am to 6.00 pm – 18 races in a single day, with each of the nine teams competing in ten races. This placed just as much demand on the sailors as it did on the team ashore and on the support boats. On Sunday, there were nine more races. This brought the total for the weekend to 27 races, with each team sailing 15 races. The prize-giving ceremony took place at 3.30 pm.

The top three places on Matchday 3:

Rank Team Skipper and Crew
1. SALTO SAILING Team Norway Stian Kristiansen and Elliot Finnestrand
2. Alster HSC Dirk Thalheim and Stephanie Brix
3. Team Sophia Calle Sibbert and Sophia Hein

Final results after 27 races, 20 September 2026. Full results for Match Day 3 on manage2sail: https://manage2sail.com/de-DE/event/HKDC20263#!/results?classId=7f22d724-97ea-4602-9ec3-3e0b834363c7

“A new country, a new sailing area and lots of exciting regatta races. Belgium was a very special end to the season for Sophia. The highlight for her was being able to sail alongside her coach, Calle. We can see how, from regatta to regatta, she gets more and more caught up in the excitement and how much joy and ambition she brings to her sport. It’s wonderful for us to be able to support her on this journey.”

– Sandra Hein, Sophia’s mother

The 2026 overall standings

Scoring is based on the low-point system across the three race days: the daily placings are added together, and the competitor with the fewest points wins. In the event of a tie, the best single race day result decides the winner.

The top four places in the overall standings:

Rank Team Skipper and Crew
1. SALTO SAILING Team Norway Stian Kristiansen and Elliot Finnestrand
2. Alster HSC Dirk Thalheim and Stephanie Brix
3. BLAG Sailing Team Alexandre Grosjean and Benoît Lumay
4. Die Zwei Jürgen Brietzke and Siegmund Mainka

Final standings for the 2026 overall standings. The total of the three match day placings is used for the standings. Full overall list featuring all 21 teams is available on manage2sail under ‘Documents’: https://manage2sail.com/de-DE/event/HKDC20263#!/onb?tab=documents&classId=7f22d724-97ea-4602-9ec3-3e0b834363c7

The Norwegian crew Salto were the most consistent of the season: second place in Hamburg, victory in Sassnitz, victory in Bütgenbach. Second place went to Team Alster HSC from the Hamburg Sailing Club, with Dirk Thalheim and Stephanie Brix, whilst third place went to the BLAG Sailing Team from the Belgian hosts, with Alexandre Grosjean and Benoît Lumay. Team Sophia finished the season ninth in the overall standings.

“Tough conditions – but we wouldn’t have it any other way. A fantastic regatta!”

– Stian Kristiansen, skipper of SALTO SAILING Team Norway

Hosts in Belgium

The final was organised by the Royal Yacht Club Warche: a small club which, with a large team of volunteers, spent days preparing a full regatta weekend – alongside the club’s day-to-day running. This hospitality is what will be remembered from Bütgenbach, alongside the results. The main organiser on site was Alexandre Grosjean, who also competed as skipper of the BLAG Sailing Team. The Race Committee on the water was made up of German and Belgian members, with volunteers from both countries – and it ran smoothly throughout the 27 races.

“Respect and fair play are values that form the very DNA of sailing. This regatta has shown us that sailing is a sport in which inclusion also has its place.”

– Eric Mathieu, President of the Royal Yacht Club Warche

Opening remarks at the prize-giving ceremony were delivered by Sonja Fickers from the management team of the ‘People to People’ Small Project Fund at Euregio Maas-Rhein – which funded the final – and Kathy Elsen from the municipality of Bütgenbach. Both welcomed the guests and thanked all the partners involved for making this event in Belgium possible.

Outlook for 2027

“The Heinz Kettler Germany Cup demonstrates that inclusion in sport is most compelling when it becomes the norm: the same boats, the same races and a single ranking. The fact that we have, for the first time, taken the final beyond Germany’s borders to Belgium is therefore an important next step for us. Together with our partners, we want to develop the series further in the long term, build stronger international networks and, in doing so, inspire even more people, with and without disabilities, to take part in sailing together. The Heinz Kettler Foundation will continue to provide long-term support for this initiative.”

– Andreas Sand, Chairman of the Heinz Kettler Foundation

The series will enter its fifth season in 2027. A race day is planned at the Möhnesee Yacht Club, which founded the series together with the Heinz Kettler Foundation and Wir sind Wir Inclusion in Sailing e.V. A race day is also scheduled for 10–12 August 2027 in Sassnitz, running alongside the SailGP and in cooperation with the Germany SailGP Team.

Partners and Sponsors

The series is named after and primarily sponsored by the Heinz Kettler Foundation. The founders and initiators are the Möhnesee Yacht Club, the Heinz Kettler Foundation and Wir sind Wir Inclusion in Sailing e.V. The first race day was organised by the Hamburg Sailing Club, whilst the final was organised by the Royal Yacht Club Warche. The first match day in Hamburg was supported by Hamburg Active City, whilst the second match day in Sassnitz – which took place alongside the SailGP – was supported by the Germany SailGP Team presented by Deutsche Bank, the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and many other sponsors. Wir sind Wir Inclusion in Sailing e.V. is a Purpose Partner of the Germany SailGP Team. The final in Bütgenbach was held as part of the ‘People to People’ Small Project Fund under the Interreg Meuse-Rhine programme (NL-BE-DE) and was funded by the European Union.

About the Heinz Kettler Germany Cup

The Heinz Kettler Germany Cup is Germany’s first and only national inclusive regatta series. First held in 2023, the series entered its fourth season in 2026.

The organiser provides the RS Venture Connect class boats – no team needs to own or transport their own boat. In 2025, an inclusive regatta was held for the first time in Sassnitz alongside the SailGP; in the same year, the Heinz Kettler Inclusive Youth Sailing Team Germany was founded, in which young sailors with and without disabilities are trained together for competitive sailing.

Founded in 1999, the Heinz Kettler Foundation puts the concept of inclusion between recreational sport and para-sport into practice and supports projects at regional and national level – without restriction as to sport, age or gender.

Press Service

Press images from the final in Bütgenbach – selected shots, free of charge for editorial use: flickr.com/photos/svenjjj/albums/72177720335699707

Press contact

Sven Jürgensen

Chairman of Wir sind Wir Inclusion in Sailing e.V.

Email: sven.juergensen@wir-sind-wir.org

Mobile: +49 171 683 5555

Website: www.wir-sind-wir.org

#wirallesegeln #alleanbord

The final of the 2026 Heinz Kettler Germany Cup in Belgium was supported by the European Union and the ‘People to People’ Small Project Fund under Interreg Meuse-Rhine (NL-BE-DE).