DETROIT, Mich. (August 23, 2026) – Bright sunshine and fresh conditions on the Detroit River produced some of the most exciting match-race sailing of the 100 races held across four days of competition, crowning a new champion in the 13th edition of Bayview Yacht Club’s International Match Race for the Detroit Cup. After taking the first-to-three-point final to a fifth and deciding match, Tom Picot (AUS) and crew Damien Fleury and Frank Lavenan captured the 2026 Detroit Cup, the second stage of the USA Grand Slam Series. Their battle with Christian Prendergast (USA) kept spectators on the edge of their seats across Bayview Yacht Club’s lawns and decks, with world-class match racing on display throughout the afternoon.
The road to the final began with Saturday afternoon’s semifinals and concluded Sunday morning after contentious racing determined the championship pairing. Brisk winds of 12 to 22 knots kept Bayview’s fleet of equally matched Ultimate 20s in close contact through the pre-starts and upwind legs, while the boats planed at high speed downwind on courses set directly in front of the club. Picot defeated Harrison Strom (USA) 3-2, while Prendergast defeated Josh Hyde (NZL) 3-1. In the petit final, Strom swept Hyde 2-0 to claim third place. In the consolation round, Marcello Torre (AUS) won all four of his matches to finish fifth overall.
“Besides the outstanding job our race committee, umpires, volunteers, sponsors, housing hosts and staff at Bayview did this year, I want to applaud all the competitors for their cooperation, great sailing skills and high level of integrity throughout this event … especially Tom Picot who agreed to allow us to extend the racing past the afternoon deadline to race a fifth match when he could have disagreed and forced us to revert to the Round Robin results, which he won.” – Gary Shoemaker, Detroit Cup Event Chair
Final Results | 2026 Detroit Cup
- 🇦🇺 Tom Picot (AUS)
- 🇺🇸 Christian Prendergast (USA)
- 🇺🇸 Harrison Strom (USA)
- 🇳🇿 Josh Hyde (NZL)
- 🇦🇺 Marcello Torre (AUS)
- 🇺🇸 Ryan Seago (USA)
- 🇸🇪 Theo Westerlind (SWE)
- 🇬🇧 James Pinder (GBR)
- 🇺🇸 Noah Robitshek
Complete results: https://www.matchracingresults.com/2026/detroit-cup
Event information: https://www.byc.com/detroit-cup
Photo Gallery: View and download 2026 Detroit Cup photos
ABOUT WORLD MATCH RACING TOUR:
Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The WMRT is awarded ‘Special Event’ status by the sport’s world governing body – World Sailing – and the winner of the WMRT each year is crowned World Sailing Match Racing World Champion. Since 2000, the World Match Racing Tour and its events have awarded over USD24million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors. www.wmrt.com