This coming weekend, the Italian Fireball Class championship will take place at PuntAla Camp & Resort: up to nine races and a program designed to combine sports, entertainment, and a vacation on the Maremma coast.
FromSeptember 10 to 13, 2026, the waters off the private beach of the PuntAla Camp & Resort will host the Italian Fireball Class Championship, one of the season’s most important events for national dinghy sailing.
Organized by the Punta Ala A.S.D. Sailing Center on behalf of the Italian Sailing Federation (FIV), the Championship will bring crews to Tuscany, ready to compete for the Italian title on the race course in the Gulf of Follonica, one of the most popular in the Tyrrhenian Sea.
There are already 20 crews registered, but that number could still grow. Among them will be international participants who, while not competing for the Italian championship title, will help raise the technical and sporting level of the competition and make the battle for the overall standings even more exciting. The title of Italian Fireball Class Champion will be awarded to the top Italian crew, while additional awards will go to the top crews in the Fireball Classic, Under-25, and mixed categories.
The event will kick off on Thursday, September 10, with the finalization of registrations and the skippers’ meeting. The races, meanwhile, will begin on Friday, September 11, and continue through Sunday, September 13, with a schedule that includes up to nine races in total, typically with a maximum of three per day.
The crews will compete on a triangle-windward-leeward course in a body of water enclosed between the Maremma coastline and the silhouettes of Elba Island and the other islands of the Tuscan Archipelago. The shape of the Gulf of Follonica offers good shelter from stronger currents and storm surges, while the thermal breezes—generally steady and of moderate intensity—often create ideal conditions for dinghies. It is a technically interesting race course, with wave action that is usually moderate even when the wind picks up.
For three days, starts, crossings, and rounding of buoys will bring the stretch of sea right in front of the resort to life, turning the regatta into a spectacle that can be viewed directly from the beach. It’s a prime spot to watch the crews’ maneuvers and the Fireball sails against the backdrop of Elba Island.
As is tradition at PuntAla Camp & Resort, the event will continue on land after the boats return. The social program will accompany the race days with a happy hour, a dinner for the crews, and the closing awards ceremony.
Saturday night’s dinner will be held at Bubula – Cucina di Maremma, a restaurant that has become a staple for events at the Sailing Center, thanks to the quality of its cuisine and the warm welcome extended to the crews. The menu will showcase local flavors, featuring cold cuts and cheeses, pici with ragù, a mixed grill with roasted vegetables, and tiramisu, all paired with a selection of wines from the Tuscan Maremma.
The dinner will also be open to guests at a cost of 45 euros.To attend, you must make a reservation with the Punta Ala Sailing Center office by Friday, September 11.
The logistics hub and heart of the event will be the PuntAla Camp & Resort, where the boat park, race office, beach, amenities, and accommodations are all located just a short walk from one another. Crews, families, staff, and guests will thus be able to share the Championship experience both in and out of the water, in the welcoming atmosphere of the pine forest overlooking the sea.
For those accompanying the competitors, race days can alternate between watching the action from the beach and the resort’s many outdoor activities: mountain biking, e-MTB, and gravel biking; sailing; windsurfing; SUP; kayaking; tennis; CrossFit; and the Sport Beach Arena. With the option to stay on a campsite, in a glamping tent, or in a vacation rental, the Italian Fireball Championship also becomes the perfect excuse to treat yourself to a few days of a late-summer vacation on the Maremma coast.
The event will take place from September 10 to 13, 2026, at the Punta Ala Sailing Center.
For the complete schedule, the call for entries, and all information about the regatta: https://www.centrovelicopuntaala.it/regate/fireball-campionato-italiano-2026/
