The 199th Cowes Week lost a day of racing to Storm Floris in 2025 and ended with more than 400 boats running downwind under spinnakers.
Cowes Week, first sailed in 1826, held its 199th edition on The Solent off Cowes, Isle of Wight, from Saturday 2 to Friday 8 August 2025.
Cowes Week Limited runs the regatta. The Solent’s double tides make the water tricky, and the fleet ranges from Olympic and world-class professionals to weekend sailors. Boats race in two groups: the White Group of day-boats and the Black Group of larger keelboats.
The first Sunday brought a big breeze, and Storm Floris then cancelled all racing on the Monday. Sunshine and lighter winds followed mid-week.
The regatta took 450 entries, up 9 per cent on 2024. More than 400 boats finished the last race off the Royal Yacht Squadron line under multicoloured spinnakers.
The overall winner was the XOD Astralita, helmed by John Tremlett with Fraser Graham and Tim Copsey, with five wins and a second in a fleet of 38. The Quarter Tonner BLT, owned by Sam Laidlaw, took the Black Group. In IRC Zero the TP52 Braveheart won after a close week, and Flying Jenny won the Cape 31 mini-series and the Britannia Cup.