It was a tough breeze throughout the whole weekend. Six races were sailed in very gusty westerly winds between 12 and 25 knots. Perfect Tornado racing conditions on the beautiful alpine lake Forggensee.
Nine teams from Germany, Austria and Australia competed in the 57th Tornado Alpencup. The race committee managed to complete all six scheduled races despite the challenging conditions. The event counted as the German nationals.
On the water, Markus and Nikolas Betz were unbeatable, winning all six races to become the 2026 German Tornado Champions with a perfect score. Jens Blum and Rupert Fritz from Austria finished second overall, while Jürgen and Tobias Jentsch finished third overall and secured the title of Vice German Champions as the second-best German team. A remarkable achievement by Jürgen Jentsch is that he has competed in every Tornado Alpencup since the very first edition.
A remarkable achievement by Jürgen Jentsch, our class President, and Willi Guggenmos is that they have competed in every Tornado Alpencup since its second edition, and remain valued members of the class.
Congratulations also to the mixed crews of Allan Gamble and Imke Dr. Jansen from Australia, who finished fourth overall, and Jonas Beilharz and Amelie Genkinger, who finished fifth overall and were the third-ranked German team.
A big thank you goes to the entire team of volunteers, who did an outstanding job both on land and on the water. Many highly experienced sailors supported the event as race officials and mark layers. A special compliment goes to race officer Lars Schwarz and his team for running an excellent championship in demanding conditions.
On Saturday evening, the annual meeting of the German Tornado Association took place. Markus Betz was re-elected as President, Irina Albl as Vice President, and Nikolas Betz was elected as the new Treasurer. Josef Gunkel did a perfect job for many years, and the class thanked him for his outstanding commitment. Jonas Beilharz was elected as the new Secretary.
Congratulations to all competitors, volunteers, and the Segelclub Füssen Forggensee for another successful German Tornado Championship.
