Thirteen of the world's top boats are expected at the Royal Cork Yacht Club for the event supported by Cork County Council and the Port Of Cork, which is due to take place from June 3 to 8.

Competition on June 6 will also see sailors compete on the River Lee, bringing them into the heart of Cork City.

The total prize fund will be split across the top seven finishers with the winner set to receive €3,000 (£2,440/$4,078), while second place will get €2,000 (£1,620/$2,710) and third €1,500 (£1,220/$2,039).

Fourth place will pick up €1,250 (£1,017/$1,700), €1,000 (£813/$1360) will go to fifth with sixth getting €750 (£610/$1,019) and seventh €500 (£407/$680).

Chairman of the event, Ronan Enright, said: "Having a prize fund shows the commitment this event has to attract some of the world's best sailors.

"It also shows how fortunate we are to have sponsors like Cork County Council and Port Of Cork without whom we could not run such events."

Olympic champion Tamara Echegoyen Dominguez of Spain is the current women's match racing world champion ©Getty Images



Women's match racing was first held as part of the ISAF World Championships in Dubai in 1998.

This year will be the 16th edition of the Championships in their own right, having first taken place in Genoa, Italy, in 1999.

Dane Dorte Jensen won the first three events and added a fourth title on home waters in Copenhagen in 2006.

American Sally Barkow is a two-time winner in 2005 and 2006, while Claire Leroy of France is also a back-to-back winner in 2007 and 2008.

Spaniard Tamara Echegoyen Dominguez won the Championship last year in Busan, South Korea.

Dominguez was part of the Spanish team that won Olympic gold at London 2012 in the women's Elliott 6m match racing class at Weymouth.

Camilla Ulrikkeholm of Denmark is currently ranked number one in the discipline and is highly fancied to challenge for the Francoise Pascal Memorial - Women's Match Racing World Championship Trophy in Cork, which is awarded to the overall winner.

For more information on this year's Championships click here.

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


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