Defiant and Jawn Claim Top Honors at 2025 Philadelphia Cup Regatta

The 2025 Philadelphia Cup Regatta, presented by Sea Philly and the Independence Seaport Museum, brought together sailors and spectators along the Delaware River for a weekend of competition and celebration. With winds averaging just 6 knots out of the north-northeast, patience and tactical precision proved to be the keys to victory.

In the PHRF handicap class, Jon Burnham’s Defiant, a J/29 representing the Riverton Yacht Club, secured the overall win. Burnham and his crew—Tori Burnham, Bob MacCausland, Liz Irwin, Max Pignetti, Andrew Coleman, and Chaz Burnham—took three out of four races to finish with just three points after a throw-out.

“Tactics were based on an enormous amount of patience and the invaluable input from our crew in such shifty conditions,” Burnham said.

The nine-boat PHRF class featured seven of Liberty Sailing Club’s fleet of J/27s. Philadelphia’s Caitlin Youngster finished second with New Jersey, a J/27, while Audubon, New Jersey’s Rich Sita placed third aboard the J/27 Pennsylvania.

In the J/22 one-design class, Ryan Lippincott’s Jawn, sailing out of Riverton, New Jersey, posted four wins in five races for a commanding low-point score of 4. Crew members included Townsend “Tod” Wentz and Mike Wainwright.

“With the wind being light, we thought the current would be a large factor in the racing, and it was,” Lippincott said. “My crew did a fantastic job on the water.”

The victory added a family connection to the regatta’s history. Lippincott’s grandfather, Howard Lippincott, won the Philadelphia Cup in 1985 aboard Cirrus, a Lippincott 36 that he built himself.

Behind Jawn, second place went to Chris Debruyn’s Swivet, sailing for the Corinthian Yacht Club of Philadelphia, while Michele Mottini’s Group Therapy of the Riverton Yacht Club took third.

Beyond the racing, the Philadelphia waterfront came alive with the Delaware River Festival, organized by the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, the Center for Aquatic Sciences, the Philadelphia Water Department, and the Independence Seaport Museum. Spectators enjoyed shoreside exhibits and a view of the racing framed by the Ben Franklin Bridge.

An awards ceremony capped the regatta aboard the historic tall ship Gazela, where class winners’ names were engraved on the Philadelphia Cup.

“Liberty Sailing Club is incredibly grateful to the community on both the Pennsylvania and New Jersey sides of the Delaware River for helping to make this regatta happen,” said Laura Ness, regatta director. “The wind might not have been ideal, but the enthusiasm and excitement for sailing on the Delaware River, especially with the beautiful backdrop of Center City Philadelphia, was palpable.”

The Philadelphia Cup Regatta will return in fall 2026.

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