Dragon
Johan Anker’s keelboat with long overhangs – from Nordic coastal boat to Olympic class and royal pastime.
The Norwegian designer and sailor Johan Anker drew the Dragon in 1929 as a simple coastal boat with two berths, for sailors who could not afford the big racing yachts. The boat turned out to be unusually beautiful and fast.
The Dragon became an Olympic class in 1948 and was sailed at the Olympic Games until 1972. King Olav of Norway and Prince Philip both raced Dragons, and the class has sailors all over the world today.
Materials: Carvel-built wood on oak frames, lead keel; later fibreglass
Manufacture: Built by many yards in the Nordic countries and Europe from 1929; in fibreglass from the 1970s.
The long, slender overhangs fore and aft.
The small cabin and the narrow cockpit.
The long keel with the rudder directly behind it.