The Interdominion Nations Trophy is back in New Zealand hands after the country's school sailing teams swept both divisions of the 2026 JetPark Secondary Schools Interdominion Team Racing Championships at Royal Akarana Yacht Club.
Six Kiwi teams took on five from across the Tasman between 29 September and 3 October. The open and female leagues contested the Nations Trophy first, before all 11 teams came together for the Schools Trophy.
New Zealand won both the open and female divisions, reclaiming the Nations Trophy after Australia took overall honours last year when the regatta was held in Goolwa.
Auckland Grammar School, captained by Tom Pilkington, topped the open division with six wins from eight races. Westlake Boys High School and Macleans College rounded out a strong New Zealand showing in second and third, with Australia's Hutchins School Gold and Hutchins School Magenta filling out the top five.
Westlake Girls High School were just as dominant in the female division. Nine and a half wins from 12 races put them clear of fellow Kiwi side Nelson College for Girls, with Australia's Moreton Bay College third. Whangarei Girls High School, Ascham School and Fahan School completed the field.
With New Zealand winning both divisions, the Nations Trophy stayed on home soil.
"It's perfect! All the New Zealand teams worked amazing together, and it was great to see the other New Zealand girls teams putting up a fight and getting some really good wins against the Aussie teams," Westlake Girls captain Jess Handley told Insight Media. "Super proud of all the teams."
Attention then turned to the Schools Trophy, where all 11 teams raced head-to-head across open and female divisions.
Auckland Grammar carried their form straight through, finishing on top of the open Schools Trophy with 16 wins. Hutchins Gold were second on 10, with Westlake Boys on six, Macleans College on five and Hutchins Magenta on three.
Westlake Girls were again the standout performers, taking out the female Schools Trophy with 15 wins. Moreton Bay College finished second on 10, Ascham School third on eight, Nelson College for Girls fourth on five, Whangarei Girls fifth on four and Fahan School sixth on three.
Both Auckland Grammar and Westlake Girls went through their respective Schools Trophy campaigns unbeaten, capping off a memorable week for the two New Zealand schools.
For Westlake Girls, the win also carries historic weight. It stretches their run at the Interdoms to four consecutive female titles, with Handley leading the side to both this year's win and last year's victory in Goolwa.
"It feels pretty good to win the Interdominions again! It's been such a cool experience, with so many good girls' teams battling it out here," Handley told Insight Media. "We have an amazing team, and it feels really good to end my high school sailing career on a high."
