ETHAN THOMPSON CROWNED 2026 CANADIAN WASZP CHAMPION

 

What A Weekend

Canadian Championships at Bedford Basin Yacht Club came a week after Halifax hosted SailGP, in which many of our participants were a part of in some way. There was great energy in the group and they were hard at work from the first day they came to BBYC on June 22nd, right through the end of the regatta on the 28th.

BBYC has two WASZPs at their club and are excited to get their Learn To Sail/Racers experience in foiling on these two foiling dinghies. In a moment of wonderful collaboration, WeCANFoil and the competing sailors shared their expertise with some of the instructors from BBYC.

New Canadian Champion Crowned

Ethan Thompson from RNSYS and the WASZP North American Race Team took the championship with a solid and consistent performance, coming first in almost every race he sailed during the championship. Ethan sailed with skill, composure and excitement that could be felt on the racecourse.

Rounding out the podium was Andi Kinnear in second place and Callum Ruch in third.

It was a battle for the podium as the positions changed several times as Adrien De Pas and Henry Krieble fought hard throughout the weekend taking podium positions throughout each race day. We are grateful for the entire fleet as they raced well together and pushed each other throughout the regatta.

The Warm Community of Swarm

BBYC provided an excellent community feeling for the backdrop of this event. The Head of the learn to sail program, Rob MacLean, shared that they were happy to be hosting and excited to host again should the opportunity arise! From pizza, bbq’d burgers, to great boat park atmosphere, BBYC hosted the Swarm in true Eastern Hospitality!

Agustin Ferrario, from WeCANFoil, and the coach of the WASZP North American Race Team, shared that it was quite an event in that “We had competing a first time foiler to a top 5 in the world. Everyone helping each other improve and that’s what this class is about.”

The wind came in daily, but at varying times. The Organizing Committee, the Race Committee and the sailors are worked together to make the weather work each day. On Saturday, during a light wind beginning, Agastya Sharma and Kathleen Moriarty from DeepSense, a Halifax-based innovation hub with deep roots in ocean industry, connecting organizations across sectors with data science and AI talent, joined the sailors. They wanted to understand how sailors rig their WASZPs and get more out of their Vakaros devices. Kathleen brought relevant cross-over insight, having just built a wind shadow detection tool using SailGP's F50 telemetry, so there was plenty to compare between big-boat foiling and the WASZP fleet!

The conversation ranged from how sailors use data today, reviewing starts, tack angles, and boat speed, to brainstorming what tools could flag next, like tricky wind angles and integrating time-series data to reveal insights and hidden patterns. Such tools could push front-of-fleet performance while helping newer foilers find their feet.

It was a fantastic example of the class's spirit: sailors, coaches, and data folks geeking out together to sail smarter.

We are extremely thankful to WeCANFoil for sharing the knowledge of the RaceSense and Vakaros equipment and system, and engaging Joyce at Lumi Sailing for taking wonderful photos of the event, including professional headshots of the athletes for their personal use.

The Canadian WASZP Class Association is grateful to Paula Minnikin, our Race Officer, all of the volunteers that assisted on land and support boats, and especially to all of the sailors that joined us for these championships.