Having fallen asleep to sounds of the ferries traveling to and from Lesbos and woken up to the sound of the fishing boats' engines for years, Ayvalık rejoiced with the J/70 Türkiye Championship.

Görkem Baygın, Setur Marinas Ayvalık Front Office Representative

This year's J/70 4^th Leg Türkiye Championship races, hosted by Setur Marinas Ayvalık and Ayvalık Sailing Sports Club, took place between October 10–13 on the challenging courses between Ayvalık and Alibey Island.

Brought to Türkiye in 2018, the fleet started its races in the Bodrum-Marmaris region and continues in Istanbul-Çeşme-Olympos Regatta and finally in Ayvalık. The yachters, competing in the Türkiye Championship for the first time in the seas of Ayvalık, faced a tough challenge with the fast-changing weather conditions of Ayvalık. With the wind changing again on the last day, they spent a day full of competition with their revised tactics. The race was supervised by the chief referee Duran İzgi. With the committee having international referees such as Neven Baran, Jules Tronquet and Paul Schilizzi on board, Thomas Loesch measured the boats before the race.

Tenzor Team was the winner of the general ranking and Happy Hour Jr. was the winner of the Corinthian category, while the awards were presented to the competitors at the end of the race with the participation of the officials.

The J/70 fleet is not a competition between boats and materials, but rather a strict one-design race between the race teams. The main goal is to take advantage of the design's features such as ease of handling, budget efficiency and safety. Despite the large number of Turkish people, the international fleet recognizes English as its official language. The J/70 Türkiye class association, which has many rules, started with 6 boats and turned into a huge association over time.

The class association has not only brought the J/70 fleet to Türkiye, but also manages to breathe life into the cities it visits. Enjoyed with enthusiasm and excitement by the people of Ayvalık from the seashore, the race brought a long-awaited vibrancy to Ayvalık.

Now, after completing the Ayvalık stage, all eyes are on Çeşme for the next race of the J/70 Türkiye class association.