Royal Cork Yacht Club reschedules tricentenary celebrations

Many of the celebratory events had already been pushed back from earlier in the summer. 

The Royal Cork Yacht Club, the oldest yacht club in the world, had planned an exciting series of events across Cork Harbour this summer to celebrate its 300th anniversary.

The Royal Cork Yacht Club (RCYC) has rescheduled its Cork300 tricentenary celebrations this weekend in light of the new government restrictions.

Many of the events, which included a Tricentenary Maritime Parade in Cobh, a Tricentenary at Home Weekend Regatta, and the Fastnet Powerboat Challenge, an exciting world-record attempt, had already been pushed back from earlier in the summer. 

A family race to the city on September 12-13 has also been put on hold. 

The sailing club said it hopes to reschedule most of these events, as well as the others that were previously cancelled, including the Cork300 Gala Dinner in City Hall and Cork300 Wild Atlantic Way Cruise in Company along the Cork and Kerry coastline, to July 2021.

The events will coincide with the Irish Navy’s 75th anniversary and the final year of Seafest in Cork, making it a big year for maritime celebrations in the county.

However, a number of smaller activities will go ahead this weekend to mark the anniversary. 

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence, Simon Coveney, and Flag Officer Commanding Naval Service, Commodore Michael Malone, will join the Admiral of the RCYC, Colin Morehead, for a small ceremony at Haulbowline, the Irish Naval headquarters, and home of the original ‘Water Club of the harbour of Cork’, as it was known back in 1720.

A new RCYC exhibition, supported by AIB, will also open at the Sirius Arts Centre in Cobh on Saturday, another former home of the sailing club from 1854 to 1966. 

The exhibition, which will run until December, looks back on the history of the club over 300 years, and what life was like during its time based in Cobh.