The biggest boat show in the Baltic states is hosting a powerboat line-up this weekend that most international venues would envy.
At Meremess 2026 in Tallinn, the Estonian Water Motor Sports Federation has installed Team AlUla’s all-electric E1 RaceBird in the B-hall exhibition pool, with two of Estonia’s most decorated aquatic motorsport racers on hand to meet the public.
The show runs until Sunday, March 8, at the Estonian Fairs Centre on Pirita Road. Pool racing takes place daily between noon and 13:00, with prizes from both Meremess and the federation for the fastest lap and the three quickest times across the weekend.
It is the first time a RaceBird from the UIM E1 World Championship has been seen in the Baltic states.
The LeBron James Connection
Team AlUla Championed by LeBron James is one of the headline operations in the E1 Series, the all-electric foiling powerboat championship sanctioned by the UIM. The team finished third at the 2026 season opener in Jeddah and currently sits third in the championship standings behind Aoki Racing Team and Tom Brady’s Team Brady. Bringing the RaceBird to an indoor venue is a departure from the series’ usual coastal race locations, but the pool format gives visitors a direct look at the hardware up close.
The E1 RaceBird is the all-electric foiling platform used by all teams in the UIM E1 World Championship. At race speed the hull lifts clear of the water on foils, with power provided by electric motors supplied by Mercury Racing.
Stefan Arand: Estonia’s F1H2O Pioneer
Stefan Arand is the first Estonian ever to compete in the UIM F1H2O World Championship, the sport’s top class. He makes his appearance at Meremess fresh from one of the best seasons of his career: in December he won his maiden F1H2O Grand Prix at the Sharjah finale, taking the chequered flag 12.5 seconds clear of the field and finishing fourth overall in the 2025 championship. He has confirmed he will continue with the Sharjah Team in 2026.
Arand’s route to the F1H2O paddock was built over a decade of junior and senior titles. He has won seven world championship titles and nine European championship titles across classes including GT15, GT30, and F4, with his first world titles coming at GT15 in 2014 and 2015 when he was still competing at junior level. He earned the UIM F4 World Championship in 2022 before stepping up to F2 and then to F1H2O for his top-flight debut in 2024.
His 2025 season with the Sharjah Team included a pole position at Shanghai that made him the youngest qualifying winner in the history of the F1H2O series, though an engine failure prevented him converting it to a race victory that day. The Sharjah win in December was the payoff. Powerboat News covered Arand’s breakthrough season in the 2025 year in review.
“The season ended better than I could ever have imagined. At the home race, we managed to bring home our first victory. There are so many feelings and emotions. It’s hard to put it all into words.” – Stefan Arand, after his maiden Grand Prix victory in Sharjah, December 2025
Jasmiin Üpraus: Four Titles and Counting
Alongside Arand on the D-hall stage this evening is Jasmiin Üpraus, who at 25 is already the most successful Estonian competitor in Aquabike history. She holds four UIM-ABP Aquabike World Championship titles in the Ski Ladies GP1 class: circuit racing in 2022, slalom in 2023, and both circuit and slalom in 2024. Her 2024 golden double confirmed her as the dominant force in women’s GP1 racing heading into the current season.
Üpraus races for the 64 Racing Factory team and won the opening round of the 2025 Aquabike World Championship in Indonesia in August. She is entering her eighth contracted season at world championship level.
Üpraus Aquabike World Titles
Arand World Titles
Arand European Titles
Üpraus World Championship Seasons
Champions Stage and Youth Programme
The Estonian Water Motor Sports Federation has programmed a champions stage appearance this evening, Friday, March 6, at 18:00 in D-hall. Arand, Üpraus and other Estonian water motorsport athletes will discuss how they reached world championship level and what drives them to compete.
A youth bingo competition is running throughout the show weekend in partnership with Lumiorava, with a prize package including EVL merchandise signed by world champions and a grand prize draw offering an invitation to the F500 European Championship stage in Tallinn on July 24-26.
Meremess 2026
Meremess runs until Sunday, March 8, at the Estonian Fairs Centre, Pirita Road 28, Tallinn. The E1 pool demo runs daily from 12:00 to 13:00, with prizes available to competitors who record the quickest times across the three days.
John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
