Eason Lan travelled to Japan to compete in the 2025 Friendship Regatta, held at the Hayama Sailing Club in the beautiful Hayama Marina, the same venue used during the Tokyo Olympics. He was joined by two other sailors from New Zealand for this annual event, which focuses not only on racing but also on building international friendships and connections.
The training day brought tough conditions, with a 15-knot breeze, sweltering 34°C heat, and high humidity, testing the sailors right from the start.
On the first official day of racing, the team spent around five hours on the water and completed three races in the challenging heat and wind. The final day turned up the difficulty even more, with another four hours of racing in strengthening breeze. By the last race, the wind had built to 20 knots and sailors were navigating 1.5-meter confused swells, a demanding but valuable learning experience.
Eason performed strongly, finishing 4th internationally and 23rd overall.
Congratulations to Eason! He is now moving into a Starling, and we’re excited to see where his sailing journey takes him next.
