Registrations for this event are currently closed and will open up closer to the event date
The main goal of this regatta, held annually in mid-August, is to provide an opportunity for budding racers to take part in a friendly less formal introductory to competitive sailing. This event is open to all participants of local sailing schools and clubs who are under the age of 18. In previous years we have focused on the two-handed boats used by many junior sail programs around Lake Ontario; Club 420 white sail and spinnaker, RS Feva XL and RS Feva S.
In more recent years, we expanded the scope of the regatta to include the single-handed ILCA ILCA4, ILCA 6 and the Optimist class. In 2022, we hosted a very successful regatta comprising 6 races on two separate courses with a 115 competitors and coaches representing all the local yacht clubs.
For the last few years, we have been very fortunate to have the popular Thomas Fogh, Han's Fogh's son and member of the National Team and Team Canada Coach (Pan Am Games 2015) generously volunteering his services as a special guest coach and the technical expertise of the internationally qualified race officer, Irene McNeill, as a principal race officer.
Check out this spectacular drone footage from last year's event! https://youtu.be/57UP7nYbCEs
For 2023, the Hans Fogh Youth Regatta (HFYR) regatta will be held on August 23th and 24th. To further expand opportunity for racing experience to an even larger pool of budding competitors, we are planning to include ‘Oppis’, a plastic roto-molded dingy, which is similar to, but heavier than the Optimist. This class will run on a separate shorter course along with the Green Opti’s.
For the Official Notice of Race (NOR) Click Here :
Complimentary Pre-Regatta Race Clinic
In addition to guest coaching during the regatta, Thomas Fogh has generously volunteered to hold a race clinic the day prior. As some might know, Thomas Fogh has been conducting on-the-water coaching for the last half of the fleets during all previous iterations of the HFYR. This year Thomas has generously offered to host an informal sail racing clinic on the afternoon of Tuesday August 22nd, the day before the regatta (Aug 23rd-24th).
At the opening of the coaching clinic, Thomas will speak with all participants and coaches as a group to present the main teaching points and relevant details on which the clinic will be focused. Thomas will then ask all participating coaches to gather in their respective club groups to discuss and reinforce the just presented coaching points while Thomas moves between the Optimists, Fevas, C-420s, ILCA 4 and ILCA 6 participants, interacting and answering questions that may arise. At the end of the clinic, Thomas will address the entire group with closing comments and answer any final questions. The clinic is expected to run from 1300 h to 1700 h. We will need all regatta competitors and all regatta coaches to register well in advance of the event to better understand the number of participating competitors and coaches. This will help us better optimize the sail training clinic. Clubs should plan to attend as a group to get the most benefit out of the session.
All HFYR competitors and coaches who are planning to attend should indicate their intentions by ticking the Racing Clinic tic box on the regatta registration form. There is no additional charge for this event.
Looking forward to seeing all the sailors and coaches at the HFYR
Want to Help Out ?
EYC constantly strives to keep this event one of the most affordable regattas on the youth racing calendar and this is made possible with the help of people who generously donate their time to the event. If you are interested in volunteering or helping in any way to make our regatta truly successful, we would love to hear from you at jsp@eyc.ca.
For any further questions, please email us at jsp@eyc.ca
Hans Fogh
Hans Fogh was one of the most successful competitive sailors in Canadian history, with dozens of national and international championships in many different classes, including two Olympic medals. As a long-term member of EYC, he was a big supporter of our junior sailing program and developing youth sailing. We are pleased and honored to name our regatta after him.
Hans Fogh first made his Olympic debut representing his native Denmark at Rome 1960, winning the silver medal in the first-ever Flying Dutchman class with Ole Gunner Petersen. At Tokyo 1964, Fogh (with Peterson) just missed the podium in fourth with Miss Denmark 1964, and while representing Canada at Montréal 1976, he finished fourth again with Evert Bastet. Competing in the Soling class at Los Angeles 1984, his sixth and final Olympic Games, Fogh won his second Olympic medal, a bronze, 24 years after his first, an Olympic record at the time. He was also 16th at Mexico City 1968 and seventh at Munich 1972 in the Flying Dutchman.
Along with his Olympic success, between 1962-78, Fogh is a four-time World champion, winning a total of seven medals in the Flying Dutchman and Soling classes: for Denmark (three gold, one bronze) and Canada (one gold, one silver, one bronze). At the 1978 Pan American Games he won the silver medal in the Soling class. Fogh was on the crew of the Don Green at the 1978 Canada’s Cup and sailed on Canada II at the 1987 Louis Vuitton Cup.
Fogh started sailing at the age of 17 bypassing the opportunity to take over the family gardening business. His first international title was winning the Flying Dutchman at the 1960 European Championships. Gifted in spatial geometry, Fogh could envision physical objects like a sail, and worked with Danish sailor and maker, four-time Olympic Finn class champion Paul Elvstrom. Midway through his illustrious sailing career, Fogh was encouraged to move to Canada by Olympic sailor Paul Henderson who knew Canada was in need of an experienced sailmaker. Settling in Toronto in 1969, Fogh opened Elvstrom Canada and later he produced sails under his own label (Fogh Sails and North Sails) and opened a retail store (Fogh Marine) which still exists today. He was married to his wife Kristen for 49 years, became a Canadian citizen in 1975, and had two sons.
Fogh’s sailing career spanned seven decades from his first race in the late 1950s to his last race in 2014. He shared Los Angeles 1984 with his oldest son Morten and was able to compete in two Olympic trials with his youngest son Thomas. Born in Rodovre, Denmark, near Copenhagen, Fogh died from Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease in Toronto in 2014.