Monaco Energy Boat Challenge

11/07/2026

11:10 – The Endurance Race has been cancelled.

The Endurance Race has been cancelled because of high waves. This means we’re no longer allowed to go back out for a triumph round. Because of this, we’ve stopped working on the boat and will debrief with the team. This also marks the end of the Monaco Energy Boat Challenge for us.

We want to thank everyone who has supported us through these unforgettable days. Without your tremendous support, we would not have made it this far. We’ve shown great resilience over the past few days. After every setback, we worked through night and day to get Appa ready and running for the next race. The final race result doesn’t really reflect the true performance and capabilities of our boat and team. We are very proud of our team and how our boat has sailed, foiled and banked.

Much love, The TU Delft Hydro Motion Team 2026

10:47 – Still in the harbour.

At the moment, we’re still doing all we can to get Appa up and running. Since we didn’t start with the rest of the Sea Lab Class, we’ve been disqualified from the Endurance Challenge, which means we won’t score any points today. Nevertheless, we’re working to fix the technical issues so we can end the Monaco race with a few laps for the team and our supporters.

10:05 – Technical problems.

The Endurance Race has started, but unfortunately we’re facing technical issues, which means Appa is still in the harbour. We’re doing everything we can to get her ready and out on the water. We’ll keep you up to date!

9:10 – Preparing for the Endurance Race.

The pilots have been briefed by the MEBC, and the team is preparing Appa for the final race of the competition. It all comes down to the next few hours. We’re doing everything we can to perform at our best and show our capabilities in our strongest field: the Endurance Race!

8:29 – Change in schedule.

The Endurance Race has been moved up to 10:00 this morning! Due to rough waves, the race will now start at 10:00 outside the Monaco harbour, in the Stadium.

8:00 – Race Day 3!

Good morning from Monaco! Today is our final, most important, and longest race: the Endurance Race. Over the course of 3 hours, we’ll need to complete as many laps around the Stadium as possible. The team with the most laps wins.

 

10/07/2026

15:53 – Time to come back into the harbour!

It’s time to come back to the harbour and celbrate this great result!

15:51 – Victory Donuts!

We are celebrating this great result with some donuts in front of the audience!

15:47 – Sailing into the harbour!

We came in second! The boat held up very well and we are currently returning to the harbour.

15:40 – “We are very wet” – Pilot Peter

The waves are hitting left and right and our pilots are getting very wet. The boat is holding up great!

15:39 – Rough sea!

The sea is very rough and we are making some huge jumps! Appa is pushing through with steady pace.

15:37 – Halfway point reached!

We have made it to the halfway point and are turning back. Right now we are in second place!

15:34 – The race is back on!

Correction on the last update: The race is still on but has become half of the length. Appa is still moving steadily through the rough waves and we are doing well!

15:20 –  Race called off.

All boats are asked to return to the harbour by the Organisation because off the rough wheater. We a still waiting for an update about the race.

15:05 – We are off!

The race has started and we are quickly racing towards italy!

14:35 – Appa is in the water!

After hours of hard work the new front foil is mounted and ready to use. Appa is back in the water and ready for the crossing to Italy and back!

14:00 – Almost ready!

Final touches are being put on Appa as the team gears up for the 16 NM Challenge, kicking off at 15:00. The pilots are getting briefed as we speak about the race details. Everyone’s all hands on deck to be ready for the start in time!

11:22 – Change in schedule.

The 16 Nautical Miles Race has been delayed by one hour. We will now set sail from the harbour at 15:00!

8:00 – Good morning from Monaco!

Today’s a big one: the 16 Nautical Miles Race to Italy and back. First, we lift the boat out of the water in order to attach the new front foil and get all its systems ready to go. Once that’s done, we’re set to take off across the water once more.

Stay tuned for updates throughout the day!

 

09/07/2026

18:02 – Finished for the day!

Talk about an eventful day! Today threw some unexpected challenges our way, but the team showed incredible fighting spirit. We refused to back down, pushed through the setbacks, and fought our way to 3rd place in the manoeuvrability challenge! The work doesn’t stop here. Right now, we’re diving straight into preparations for tomorrow. We’re going to give it everything we’ve got and come back even stronger.

See you out on the water tomorrow!

16:58 – Recap of the speed challenge.

Our first stretch went great! The boat was racing through the water! However, we hit a brief technical snag when an issue during the fuel cell startup sequence triggered a system shutdown. Because the system requires a specific boot-up time, it took us a little while to get moving again. We pushed through, crossed the finish line, and everything remains in good shape! We are currently assessing the data and will be back out there even stronger.

16:43 – We have finished!

There seemed to be some complications on the way which caused us to lose speed. We pushed through and finished our lap!

16:37 – Time to turn!

First stretch done! Time to turn and race back!

16:36 – We are racing!

We are racing!

16:33 – We are doing some donuts!

Currently we are lining up for our speed challenge lap. Before we start we are doing some donuts to charge the buffer and set up the fuel cell

16:30 – Waiting for our turn to start.

We are waiting just outside the harbour for some other teams to finish their lap. After that its our turn to race!

16:25 – We have left the harbour for the Speed Challenge!

Appa has just left the harbour to start the speed challenge!

15:10 – Countdown until the YCM Speed Record.

While we’re still waiting for the official result of the Manoeuvrability Challenge, preparation for the next race is in full swing. At 16:30 the YCM Speed Record starts in the Stadium outside the harbour. Here we’ll push our boat to the limits and see how fast we can sail!

14:25 – Docked at the finish.

Appa sailed the course and docked backwards into the assigned spot, finishing with great speed and precision. Now we wait to hear the results.

14:20 – Start!

We have started the Manoeuvrability Challenge!

13:40 – The start of the Manoeuvrability Challenge.  

The Manoeuvrability Challenge has just started in the harbour. We were scheduled to showcase our manoeuvrability at 13:50, but our shift will most likely be later.

12:10 – Technical issue during parade.

We ran into an issue during the parade. Appa’s front foil came loose, but we managed to recover it. Nothing critical for sailing was damaged, so we keep pushing! For now, we’ll take on the manoeuvrability and speed challenge without the front foil. We’ll keep you posted!

10:35 – The Parade has started!

All boats competing in the Monaco Energy Boat Challenge are sailing out one by one to showcase a year of hard work. Each boat heads to the Stadium to perform a series of showcase rounds. Appa is sailing just behind the Energy Class.

10:00 – Parade is delayed.

Appa is ready for the parade! A few other boats still need to be lowered into the water, so the parade will start a little later. Stay tuned!

9:23 – Preparing for the parade.

The MEBC unfortunately did not give us time to test before the parade. So now we will just go out at 10:00 for the parade, Exciting!

8:30 – First Race Day!

We just had our morning stand-up and are ready to prepare for today’s races. We want to start sailing at 9:00 to have a bit of testing time before the races start. The agenda for today is: 10:00 – 11:00 Parade, 13:00 – 15:00 Manoeuvrability Challenge and 16:30 – 17:30 the Speed Challenge. Stay tuned!

 

 

08/07/2026

16:37 – We are Foiling!

After passing the technical inspection we quickly gathered our gear and went out on the water for the very first time! After two rounds around the endurance circuit we starting foiling and have even made some banking turns! We are looking stable and ready to race!

 

14:34 – We are cleared to Sail!

Yes! We have been cleared to sail! Now it is time to practice some water manoeuvres before we can truly show our boats full capabilities.

11:40 – Final checks still ongoing.

Still going through the final checks. We will keep you posted!

10:10 – Final Technical Inspection!

With the team roaring to get sailing, we have just one final check to get through. With it being so busy here the inspections have turned out to take a while. So for now we are waiting for the green light, we will keep you updated!

8:00 – Morning Briefing

Monaco Day 3! This is our final day of preparations before the races begin! We have one final technical inspection to go through today, afterwards we can hopefully get some sailing in before the opening ceremony starts in the evening.

 

07/07/2026

16:20 – Almost ready for sailing

Working on the final checks before sailing!

11:30 – Technical inspection!

With just one day left till the official start of the Monaco Energy Boat Challenge 2026, we have reached the final inspections for our boat to be cleared to sail. A very exciting moment!

 

06/07/2026

19:00 – Getting the boat into the bright blue water!

We had no setbacks when assembling the boat and are ready to get her into the water! Then it is time for the technical inspection!

14:00 – Lifting boat and assembling the foils

With the final preparations done. We have lifted the boat onto the boat stand and are ready to assemble the struts and foils.

11:00 – Final Preparations before touching the water!

We arrived at the harbour last night and did a bit of exploring. Today we’re adding the finishing touches to our boat before hoisting her into the water.