Jackson Aykroyd World Champion

There are moments in sport when you realise you’re no longer watching as a photographer. You’re not thinking about shutter speed, composition or whether you’ve got the shot. You’re just standing there, heart pounding, completely invested in the outcome — willing someone on as if the result somehow belongs to you.

That’s exactly how I felt watching my very good friend Andrew Aykroyd’s son Jackson Aykroyd fight his way through the Junior 3.5cc World Championship.

To become World Champion, there was no easy route. He first had to finish in the top two of the B Final just to earn his place in the A Final. Then, having made it there, he had to do the unthinkable — win the A Final. No second chance. No relying on points or hoping other results went his way. Win the final, and you’re World Champion.
And it certainly wasn’t going to be easy. His boat had been a little unreliable throughout the 2026 domestic season and had a habit of bogging, meaning that even when the speed was there, you could never quite relax. Every time it went onto the water there was that horrible thought in the back of your mind: Is it going to run properly this time?

Then there was the competition. An incredible young French racer who was every bit as capable of winning it, alongside seriously talented juniors from Belgium, the Netherlands, Czech Republic, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia and Estonia. Junior 3.5cc was, without doubt, one of the hardest-fought classes at the entire World Championship.
Watching him get closer and closer was genuinely stressful. First, he had to deliver in the B Final — and he did. Top two. A Final secured.
And suddenly, it was all or nothing.

I’ve photographed an awful lot of racing over the years, but by this point I wasn’t really thinking about photography. I was watching every lap, every corner, every movement of that boat, willing it to keep running and willing him to keep pushing. The stress and emotion were completely real. I was feeling it as if I were watching my own son race.
And then, somehow, he did it.
He won the A Final.
Junior 3.5cc World Champion.

The relief, the disbelief and the sheer pride all hit at once. What made it even more special was knowing what he had overcome to get there — a will-it-won’t-it boat, the pressure of the B Final, the absolute necessity of winning the A Final, and a field packed with exceptionally talented young racers from across Europe.
For him, it was an incredible achievement.
For his family, a moment they will never forget.
And for me, standing there with a camera in my hands but barely thinking about taking photographs, it was one of those sporting moments that stays with you.

Sometimes, being a photographer means you get to document somebody else’s greatest achievement.
Sometimes, you feel every second of it yourself.
This was definitely one of those times.
Jackson Aykroyd World Champion. What an achievement.

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