2016 SAILING Champions League Season

At the beginning of the year, the Steering Committee as representative of the 14 National Sailing Leagues set the dates and the qualification system for the third season of the SAILING Champions League. In 2016, the SCL will have a qualification event in St. Petersburg/Russia from August 26th to 28th at the St. Petersburg Yacht Club and the final in Porto Cervo/Italy at the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda from September 23rd to 25th.

Directly qualified for the final in Porto Cervo are the twelve national champions of 2015, the current SCL champion (the Kongelig Norsk Seilforening from Oslo), the hosting Yacht Club Costa Smeralda as well as the best 18 clubs of the qualification event in St. Petersburg.

The line-up for the qualification event in St. Petersburg: the second and third ranked clubs from the national leagues 2015 and clubs with wild cards granted by the Steering Committee.

At both events a maximum of 32 clubs can participate.

Apart from the dates and the qualification system the Steering Committee did also decide on the prompt foundation of an “International Sailing League Association” as an official representation of interests of all national leagues.

The six members of the Steering Committee all agree, that the planned foundation of the “International Sailing League Association” shall take place this year. “The fast spreading of the sailing league format with the demand for a standardized framework as well as a central interface need a reliable representation of interests,” says Oliver Schwall, Managing Director of the SAILING Champions League.

Through the membership in the “International Sailing League Association” all national league organisations commit to the compliance of the framework and thus secure their eligibility for the qualification for the SAILING Champions League.

After two successful years of the SAILING Champions League and three years of sailing in the league format in Europe the SCL organisers from Konzeptwerft are publishing the “National Sailing League Rule Book”, the first manual for National Sailing Leagues and the SAILING Champions League. The first version has been approved by the Steering Committee and will continuously be improved.

The German initiators could not foresee the fast development of the new sailing format “National Sailing League” as the first club competition on country level, when they started in 2013. Two years later, twelve leagues were established in Europe. At least three more countries are supposed to follow in 2016.

To ensure comparability of the National Sailing Leagues and thus come to the qualification of the best clubs for the SAILING Champions League, the SCL organisers and the Steering Committee did compose a manual, the official “Rule Book”.

The Rule Book defines mandatory requirements for the National Sailing Leagues to qualify for the official and nationally exclusive quality label “National League License” as defined by the founders and organisers of the SAILING Champions League. Only this quality label allows a country and the clubs of the respective league to participate in the SAILING Champions League.

The framework requirements for the National League License consists of:
– Parameters for organising a national league
– Event format and event programme
– Qualification mode

The framework requirements for the SAILING Champions League consists of:
– Tasks of the Steering Committee
– Qualification for the SCL events
– Hosting a SCL event
– Mode of a SCL event

Click here for the rulebook.

Dates 2016
Upcoming Events – SAILING Champions League
Qualification: 26/08 – 28/08, St. Petersburg/Russia, St. Petersburg Yacht Club
Final: 23/09 – 25/09, Porto Cervo/Italy, Yacht Club Costa Smeralda

Upcoming Events – National Sailing Leagues
Switzerland: 01/04 – 03/04, Locarno, 1st League
Russia: 08/04 – 10/04, Sochi
Germany: 29/04 – 01/05, Starnberg, 1st/2nd League
Switzerland: 05/05 – 08/05, Neuenburg, 1st League
Switzerland: 13/05 – 15/05, Geneva, 1st League
Denmark: 14/05 – 15/05, Oure (Lundeborg), 2nd League
Denmark: 20/05 – 22/05, Oure (Lundeborg), 1st League
Netherlands: 20/05 – 22/05, Roermond
Sweden: 20/05 – 22/05, Motala
Russia: 20/05 – 22/05, Moscow
Germany: 27/05 – 29/05, Konstanz, 1st/2nd League
Switzerland: 27/05 – 29/05, Thun, 2nd League

SAILING Championship League

Report by SAILING Championship League