15
ORIENT EXPRESS
HALUK BABACAN HELMSMAN
Sailing Career
He has been actively involved in sailing since 1977.
He won the Turkish Finn Class Championship six times between 1981 and 1995.
He represented Turkey in the Finn class at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games.
Balkan Championship – Finn Class results:
3rd place in 1990,
2nd place in 1992,
1st place in 1993.
He finished 3rd in the Finn class at Eurolymp Week held in Athens in 1994.
In 1997, he placed 3rd as helmsman at the IMX 38 European Championship held in Crete.
In 2002, he won 1st place as skipper/helmsman at the North Aegean Sailing Week in Thessaloniki.
He served as skipper/helmsman on yachts that won the Turkish Offshore Racing Club Trophy.
Championship years: 1995, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2023, 2024, and 2025.
During the 2008–2009 seasons, he competed as helmsman in the Farr 40 class at the Key West and Midwinter regattas.
In 2023, he served as helmsman for the Turkish National Team in the Star Sailors League (SSL) RC44 category.
In 2021 and 2023, he raced as tactician with the team that finished 3rd at the Sportsboat European Championship.