The starting signal for Travemünde Week is given with the call ‘Heißt Flagge!’ (Raise the flag!). This is truer than ever for the 136th edition of the sailing and festival week. After the traditional opening signal by Mayor Jan Lindenau at 6 p.m., the action got underway on the water. Patron and Minister President Daniel Günther waved the state flag, sending the crews of the long-distance regatta around Fehmarn on their course into the night at 6.11 p.m. It was a perfect signal for the great ambitions that the state of Schleswig-Holstein has for the future.
Lübeck’s mayor Jan Lindenau (centre) gives the signal ‘Heißt Flagge!’ (‘Raise the flag!’) in the presence of Minister President Daniel Günther (2nd from right), TW Managing Director Frank Schärffe (left), TW Sports Director Jens Kath (2nd from left) and Press Officer Ralf Abratis (right). Photo: Christian Beeck/TW.
Schleswig-Holstein wants to establish itself as a sporting state for both popular and elite sports. Major sailing events such as Travemünde Week provide the perfect setting for this. “Athletes from all over the world travel to Travemünde for the regattas. They are joined by numerous guests from near and far who look forward to first-class sailing and the colourful supporting programme. During the most beautiful time of the summer, they all experience the area around Lübeck Bay at its best. This is great publicity for Schleswig-Holstein. That is why the state is happy to support Travemünde Week,” said the Minister President.
As a top sailing event, Travemünde Week proves every year that Schleswig-Holstein is capable of hosting international sporting events at the highest level. ‘This reflects well on the whole state and gives us momentum in our bid to host Olympic and Paralympic sailing competitions and other disciplines,’ said Günther.
The Minister President also praised the efforts of the Travemünde Week organisers to promote sustainability and get involved in projects to protect the Baltic Sea.
In Le Mans style, Minister President Daniel Günther waves the state flag to signal the start of the endurance race. Photo: Christian Beeck/TW
The sustainability programme for Travemünde Week is being expanded, as Frank Schärffe, managing director of Travemünde Week gGmbH, reported. In addition to evaluating its own energy and water consumption and identifying potential savings, Travemünde Week is participating in projects run by Geomar and the TransOcean association and is measuring oxygen levels in the Bay of Lübeck. To this end, waste collection in the Baltic Sea will be stepped up and posted on the #catchoftheday social media campaign. There will also be training for children to become ‘climate captains’.
Travemünde Week is taking advantage of the opportunity to organise further activities, as the sailing programme can be organised more compactly due to lower registration numbers. However, next year, the international championships of the RS classes will once again fill the mooring areas and regatta courses of Travemünde Week. And for 2027, Sports Director Jens Kath also has a brand new commitment from the German Sailing Association to announce. For the third time after 2009 and 2017, the Joint German Youth and Junior Championships will be held in Travemünde. ‘We are looking forward to the sporting achievements on the water as well as the youthful spirit on land. The joy and team spirit of the young sailors are an enrichment for Travemünde Week,’ said Jens Kath.
Travemünde Week is therefore well positioned for the future. This is also good news for Lutz Kleinfeldt, who, as chairman of the main organiser, Lübeck YC, can count on broad support from various quarters: “It is the support of partners and sponsors from the public sector and industry that makes an event like Travemünde Week possible in the first place. We would therefore like to thank our 36 supporters – from the main sponsors boot and König Pilsener to the numerous suppliers – for their commitment. This year, we are celebrating ten years of partnership with Volksbank Lübeck. We are very pleased about this.”
Before Mayor Jan Lindenau gave the signal for the opening, he emphasised the importance of Travemünde Week for the Hanseatic city of Lübeck: “For decades, Travemünde Week has been a magnet for active sailors and hundreds of thousands of enthusiastic spectators and visitors who enjoy both the major sporting event and the fine festival on land. Nowhere else in the world is sailing so closely linked to a varied programme of events on land as in Travemünde. A family atmosphere, top-class sport, summer, beach feeling and entertainment are the attributes that characterise Travemünde Week year after year.”
The proximity between the land and sailing programmes celebrated a premiere this year. For the first time, the yachts set sail for the long-distance regatta around Fehmarn immediately afterwards. Race director Jens Hahlbrock took charge of the sporting side of things to get the 15 yachts off to a flying start. Minister President Daniel Günther gave the visual signal to the audience and sailors, waving the state flag in Le Mans style to signal the start.
At 6:11 p.m., the fleet of 15 yachts set sail for Fehmarn. Photo: Christian Beeck/TW
The crews from Germany, Sweden and Switzerland sailed down the Trave River into the Bay of Lübeck. It will probably be a difficult journey, as the wind is expected to pick up during the night. Race director Jens Hahlbrock has therefore already prepared alternative routes to ensure that the yachts actually reach the finish line on Saturday.
Laser show and fireworks can go ahead
The official permits have been granted, so the night-time colour displays in the sky above the Passat and Lübeck Bay can go ahead during Travemünde Week. Just in time for the start of the 136th regatta and festival week, the Office for Environmental Protection, Nature Conservation and Consumer Protection has granted permission for the laser show and fireworks display.
From Monday to Saturday, there will be a laser show at the Passat starting at 10:45 p.m. Photo: segel-bilder.de
This means that plans can now be made for the evening highlights. From Monday, 21 July, to Saturday, 26 July, there will be a light show at the Passat at 10.45 p.m. each evening. The laser show is best viewed from the Trave promenade. A coordinated music programme will accompany the show. Mirco Lorkowski from Feuerwerkdepot Nord, who is staging the show, has chosen ‘Horizon in Harmony’ as the theme for the evening performance. The 13-minute laser show will illuminate the four-masted barque Passat in an atmospheric setting. “Accompanied by a modern soundtrack, a visual journey through the world of music unfolds – sometimes powerful, sometimes dreamy, always harmonious. Colourful laser beams dance to the beat of the sounds,” says Lorkowski.
On the final Sunday of Travemünde Week, 27 July, Lorkowski will also stage the aerial fireworks display, which will be visible far beyond the Bay of Lübeck.
DSV Youth Championships 2027 goes to Lübeck
The next Joint International German Youth and Junior Championships, a major event that takes place only every four to five years, will be held from 23 July to 1 August 2027 as part of Travemünde Week
As in 2009 and 2017, the German Youth Championships will once again be held off Travemünde in 2027. Photo: segel-bilder.de
The Youth Sailing Committee of the German Sailing Association (DSV) has awarded the Lübeck Yacht Club (LYC) the contract for the major event immediately preceding the opening of Travemünde Week. This will be the third time that the club has hosted the Joint International German Youth and Junior Championships, following events in 2009 and 2017.
‘The Lübecker Yacht Club’s application immediately convinced us,’ says DSV Youth Representative Jonathan Koch. ‘Not only is the team in Travemünde extremely well organised and experienced in hosting major events, but the application also demonstrated a great enthusiasm for putting young people in the spotlight.’
In addition, the LYC emphasises sustainability and inclusion in its application. There will be sustainability workshops and activities with other partners. To promote inclusion in youth and junior sailing, the LYC wants to launch an inclusive boat or board sport class at the GIDJ(o)M.
‘We are very happy to be hosting the GIDJ(o)M 2027,’ says Jens Kath, sporting director of Travemünde Week. ‘We are looking forward to the sporting achievements on the water as well as the youthful spirit on land. The joy and team spirit of the young sailors are an enrichment for Travemünde Week.’
Since 2003, the German Youth Championships have been held every four years, and since 2022 also in the junior category, as a major event. Children, teenagers and young adults aged 10 to 28 have the opportunity to meet sailors from other classes and experience many different classes in action at a joint championship. A colourful supporting programme also contributes to the exchange between participants. DSV youth representative Jonathan Koch: ‘We will combine fun, games and knowledge transfer and are already looking forward to a great GIDJ(o)M 2027.’
