A 72-year-old participant of the 2025 Royal Langkawi International Regatta (RLIR) was injured when her team’s boat capsized during a race at about 11 am today.
Karen Rowlands, a crew member of team Boreas that is competing in the Multihull class, suffered injuries to her head, right shoulder and right thigh and was taken to the Sultanah Maliha Hospital here.
Rowlands, when met at the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club (RLYC), said the incident occurred so suddenly due to strong winds, causing the boat, skippered by John Hearne of Australia and with four other crew members on board, to capsize.
“I was on the left side of the ship before I was sent sliding to the right side and plunging into the sea…
“I banged my head against the ship… when I tried to swim to get out from underneath it, I couldn’t feel my right shoulder. That’s when the other crew members picked me up and put me on the jetski,” she said.
She added that she was taken to the RLYC where she was treated by a Malaysian Civil Defence Force (APM) personnel before being brought to hospital.
Meanwhile, RLYC executive director Azlan Abdullah said he was informed of the incident by other crew members and he contacted the APM for assistance.
“Only one crew member was injured and taken to hospital. The other crew members are still at the location and trying to turn the boat over. It will be towed back to the RLYC for us to assess the damage.
“If it’s a minor damage, we will try to repair it so that they can continue to race on the final day tomorrow. Otherwise, it’s the end of the road for them in this year’s edition of the RLIR,” he said.
