What is Sailing?
Formerly the world's major form of long-distance trade and transport, sailing - the art of moving a boat or similar vessel by harnessing the waves and the wind - is now largely a sporting pursuit.
By whom, where and when was Sailing invented?
Sailing has for thousands of years been a form of transport used in activities from exploration to fishing and even warfare.
International yacht racing began in 1851, when a syndicate of members of the New York Yacht Club built a 101-foot schooner named "America". The yacht was sailed to England, where it won a trophy called the Hundred Guineas Cup in a race around the Isle of Wight. The trophy was renamed "The America's Cup" and it remains yachting's most coveted prize as well as the world's oldest international sporting competition.
Racing has spread to other crafts which have continually evolved to reflect advances in boat design and technology. Recent advances have created a trend towards smaller and lighter craft, placing ever greater demands on both the athletic and technical capacities of the sailors.
What are the rules of Sailing?
The sport is organised under a single set of rules for racing published by World Sailing. Olympic racing is now conducted with boats categorised into one-design classes based on similar weights and measurements.
While the America's Cup follows a match race format - one boat against another - most events are fleet races where numerous crafts compete for finishing position.
In fleet races, and match races, crews must do their best to avoid contact and yield to a boat with the right of way.
Sailing and the Olympics
Sailing was first contested as an Olympic sport at the 1900 Paris Games after poor weather forced the cancellation of scheduled races at the inaugural Athens 1896 Games. It has appeared at every Games since with the exception of 1904.
Women competed alongside men in 1900 with the first women's only event introduced at Seoul 1988.
There have been numerous changes to the crafts used over the years with kiteboarding making its debut at Paris 2024.
Great Britain has long been the powerhouse nation in sailing with the United States second in the all-time medal table.
Best sailors to watch
With a number of top sailors from Tokyo 2020 retiring from the sport or switching their attentions to Sail GP and/or the America's Cup, the Nacra 17 mixed boat sees perhaps the most continuity with Italy's Ruggero Tita and Caterina Banti defending their title.
The pair duelled with training partners John Gimson and Anna Burnet in Tokyo, and look set to do so again with the crews winning gold at four of the last five World Championships (two apiece).
Sailing Competition Rules at Paris 2024
At Paris 2024, there were two mixed boats (470 and Nacra 17) plus four crafts for each gender, making 10 events.
The windsurfer RS:X was replaced by a windfoiling craft, the IQFoil, which achieved superior performance in light winds. The men's Finn was dropped from Tokyo 2020.
There were either 10 or 12 races in a competition, followed by crews receiving points depending on their finishing position, i.e., one for first, two for second, etc. The top 10 boats—those with the lowest total scores and discarding their worst race finish—went through to the medal race, which attracted double points.
The medals went to the boats with the lowest totals after the medal race, which could not be discarded. Crews with a sizable advantage raced tactically to prevent their nearest rivals from achieving a high finishing position.
