SAILING: With summer evening racing finishing up around the coast, the last of the major championships are also concluding ahead of the traditional finale to the season of weekend Autumn Leagues.

A bird's-eye view of the Irish Open Disabled Sailing Regatta is on offer when crews from England, Scotland and Ireland sail their annual championship beneath Charles Fort at Kinsale this weekend. Six races are planned for the event - four on Saturday and two on Sunday, with competitors racing in Challengers, multihulls and Squibs.

Meanwhile, three Paralympic campaigns are in Athens this week to take part in the World Championships for their fleets. Fergal Kinsella from Howth Yacht Club will race in the 2.4 fleet while John Twomey, Sean McGrath and Brian O'Mahony will take on Paul McCarthy, Paul Ryan and Chris Thomas, all from Kinsale YC to determine Ireland's crew in the Sonar at the Paralympics in Athens 2004.

Following on from their recent ninth overall at the 420 Junior Europeans at Athens, John Downey and Geoff Tait won the Irish national title at Waterford Harbour Sailing Club at Dunmore East last weekend.

Elsewhere, Ger O'Rourke's Beneteau 40.7 Chieftain won class one IRC of the Glin Castle Race staged by the Western Yacht Club last weekend. The five-and-a-half hour race saw Alan McEneff and Ger Hobbs from Foynes take class two, while club-mate Donal McCormack won class three.

Glandore Harbour SC will host the Horgan Lynch Dragon Nationals for the first time with many of the leading crews from the recent Setanta European Championship returning to Cork waters.

A number of big names from the international fleet are expected for the event, including Double Olympic gold medallist Poul-Richard Hoj-Jensen as well as Irish crews that include Johnny Ross Murphy, recent winner in Douarnenez, current National and Southern Champions Neil Hegarty, Peter Bowring and Dave Williams, who were best performers at the Europeans and former National Champion Andrew Craig.

The fleet in Glandore has been ongoing since first started by the O'Donoghue brothers in the early 1980's. Brothers Don and Kieran are still active class members campaigning in Dublin and Glandore respectively, with Don presently Class captain in the Dublin fleet.

On Dublin Bay tomorrow at lunchtime, the Royal Alfred YC rounds off its season with its Superleague finale hosted by the National YC.