CETIL Takes on the Snipe World Championship: From Mahón to the Next International Challenge

From September 19 to 26, the Club Marítimo de Mahón hosted the 2026 Snipe World Championship, bringing together nearly 90 boats from 21 countries. CETIL’s sailing team arrived in Mahón as part of the Spanish national team, having qualified alongside eight other crews through the 2025 and 2026 Spanish Championship and Spanish Cup. With four podium finishes already secured in the months leading up to the event, the team came into the World Championship ready to compete at the highest international level of the Snipe Class International Racing Association.

Across five days of racing, nine races were scheduled on what proved to be a highly demanding Mediterranean racecourse. As forecasted, the lightweight crew of Martín Bermúdez de la Puente Gallego and Beatriz Díaz Norris faced a tough opening day, with winds approaching 25 knots and waves exceeding two metres.

After the first two races, the pair sat in 30th place overall. Conditions changed dramatically on the second day, when extremely light and unstable winds allowed only one race to be completed. CETIL made the most of the difficult conditions, moving up to 26th place. With no racing possible on day three due to a lack of wind, the team entered the final stretch of the championship firmly inside the top third of the fleet.

Schedule delays meant that six races had to be completed over the final two days. The wind strengthened once again, bringing back conditions similar to those seen on the opening day. CETIL responded with a highly consistent series of results on Saturday, climbing to 24th overall ahead of the final day.

Their upward momentum was interrupted on Sunday when an equipment failure in the opening race forced the team to retire, resulting in a DNF. Combined with two further results below the level they had maintained throughout the championship, the setback dropped them to 33rd overall.

In elite competition—much like in industrial technology development—how a team responds to unexpected setbacks defines true reliability. CETIL ultimately finished the World Championship in 33rd place among almost 90 qualified boats, showing consistency and resilience right to the very end.

Attention now turns to the next international challenge: the Inaugural SSL Snipe Challenge, part of the SSL Gold Cup, an invitation-only event to be held at Marina da Glória in Rio de Janeiro. CETIL will arrive in Brazil sitting provisionally second in the Spanish national circuit, among 428 registered boats, while also leading the regional circuit. The next challenge is already on the horizon. We wish the team the very best of luck — and fair winds in Rio!