Photo credit Simon Marine Ltd
A selection trials will take place in London this autumn for teams wanting to represent Great Britian at the World Sailing Open Team Racing World Championships.
The event will make a return to the international sailing calendar in 2025 at New York Yacht Club after a 10-year hiatus with an exciting new keelboat 2x2 format.
The RYA is now urging teams to save the date for a selection trials scheduled to take place over the weekend of 2-3 November 2024, co-hosted with the Royal Thames Yacht Club and its fleet of Sonars at London’s Queen Mary Sailing Club.
Richard Moxey, RYA Keelboat Development Manager, said: “Although we’re currently unable to publish our official selection policy, as the Notice of Race is not yet available, we are urging teams in the meantime to please add the selection trials date to their diary. This will be a really exciting opportunity for teams to qualify for a place representing GBR at what will be the first team racing world championship in a decade.”
There have been two recent 2x2 keelboat team racing events hosted by Royal Thames YC and its fleet of Sonars at Queen Mary SC – the RYA Two-Boat Keelboat Team Racing Championship for the Carmela Cup, and the inaugural UK Women's Keelboat Team Racing Championship for the Lochan Cup.
The 2025 World Sailing Open Team Racing World Championships at New York Yacht Club, Newport, USA - 28 May to 1 June 2025 - will also be raced 2x2 in Sonars.
Development
David Graham, World Sailing CEO, said: “We are delighted to reintroduce the World Sailing Open Team Racing Championships in 2025 in an exciting new format that offers opportunities to grow the sport. The rise of team racing events around the world have shown the desire for more varied competitions and the appetite for sailing.”
He said the aim was to attract more nations and sailors of all ages to the discipline and provide the impetus for further growth and development of the sport for a new generation of sailors.
The new 2x2 keelboat format – where two boats race against two other boats – is also designed to be spectator-friendly, the team with the last boat to finish losing the race.
The first Team Racing World Championship was held in West Kirby, Great Britain, in 1995, with this and subsequent events having traditional 3×3 team racing in dinghies and taking place every two to three years, the last occasion being at Rutland SC in 2015.
Find out more at World Sailing Open Team Racing Championships.