Sailing World Cup Final Moves to Australia

Southampton, UK (April 29, 2016) – Australia’s sporting capital, Melbourne, is to host the 2016 Sailing World Cup Final on December 4-11 out of the St Kilda Sailing Precinct.

The Sailing World Cup Final will bring together the world’s best sailors in the aftermath of the Rio 2016 Sailing Competitions as they seek to end the year on a high heading into the Tokyo 2020 quadrennial.

With a grandstand for sailing like no other, the Sailing World Cup Final in St Kilda Sailing Precinct, made out of the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron (RMYS), St Kilda Baths, St Kilda Beach and Catani Gardens, will put the sport front and centre of the public.

Racing alongside the St Kilda Pier and beach, a bustling metropolitan atmosphere will ensure a fusion of sport and leisure. Olympic and World Champions will race across the ten Olympic fleets and the 2.4 Norlin One Design in a bid to be crowned 2016 Sailing World Cup Champion and those on-shore will be able to enjoy the show in the race village.

Andy Hunt, World Sailing CEO commented, “Melbourne’s sporting heritage is one of the finest in the world. World Sailing are delighted to be taking the centrepiece of the Sailing World Cup to the Australian city.

“Following Rio 2016, sailing will have a new crop of heroes. Welcoming them to the 2016 Sailing World Cup Final will be the start of inspiring the next generation of sailing talent. St Kilda’s thriving foreshore, Melbourne’s famous breeze and the organising authorities exceptional track record of event delivery will enable World Sailing to showcase Olympic sailing and our athletes to the wider public.”

Event Chairman, Mark Klemens said, “Last year’s World Cup held in the vibrant and cosmopolitan St Kilda sailing precinct proved itself to be an outstanding location to compete and experience. I am delighted to be Chairman of this year event and so delighted we have been chosen as the venue for the finals particularly in an Olympic year. I promise to all, a magnificently staged event with Melbourne as its back drop. I promise to competitors and spectators alike a memorable week of the highest competition on the perfect waters of Port Philip. I encourage all the finalists to come to Melbourne and experience something special.”

The 2016 Sailing World Cup Final will be the climax of a yearlong series. The first event took place in Melbourne before a stop in Miami, USA at the end of January. Two stops in Europe in Hyères, France and Weymouth & Portland, Great Britain lead into Sailing World Cup Qingdao in September before December’s showcase.

The St Kilda Sailing Precinct and the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron have welcomed Olympic sailors before, playing host to the Melbourne 1956 Olympic Sailing Competition. The legacy of the Olympiad remains and the stars who won medals on Melbourne waters then, Paul Elvstrom (DEN) and Durward Knowles (BAH) to name but a few, remain household names now.

The Rio 2016 heroes are to be crowned in just 98 days’ time and the new breed of heroes will follow in the legends footsteps on the waters they became king at the 2016 Sailing World Cup Final.

Report by Daniel Smith, World Sailing.

Background by Scuttlebutt:
The Sailing World Cup Final was inaugurated in 2014, wherein only 20 elite entrants were invited in each of the ten Olympic events and an open IKA Formula Kite event. Prize money was awarded to the top three overall finishers in each of the Olympic events from a total prize purse of US$200,000, increased to US$220,000 in 2015.

Both events were held in Abu Dhabi, and were the only World Cup events with prize money. However, neither edition lived up to its billing as the events struggled to fill the 20-boat fleets. Remote location and scheduling conflicts were often the cause.

Further, when the World Sailing Executive Committee made the decision in November 2015 to move the 2016 World Sailing Annual Conference to Europe rather than Abu Dhabi as planned, the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority took the decision to withdraw their financial support of the 2016 Sailing World Cup Final and future editions of the event.

While not stated, moving the Final from the United Arab Emirates may have been needed regardless of the funding withdrawal as the region has a history of discrimination in sport, and the event may not have been able to guarantee full and equal participation by all, in accordance with World Sailing’s Regulations.

Details regarding the 2016 Final format about participation limits and prize money have not yet been released, but we understand the fleet size will remain at twenty and there will be a yet to be disclosed prize purse.

Sailing World Cup
The Sailing World Cup is a World-class, annual series of Olympic sailing for elite and professional sailors. It is open to the sailing classes chosen for the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Competitions in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The series moves around the world to be as inclusive as possible to the top 40 boats in each class. Over 2,000 of the World’s leading sailors, representing over 75 nations compete in the Sailing World Cup which offers a definitive guide to the best-of-the-best in the Olympic sailing world.

2016 Sailing World Cup
SWC Melbourne – December 7-13 2015
SWC Miami – January 23-30 2016
SWC Hyères – April 25-May 1 2016
SWC Weymouth and Portland – June 6-12 2016
SWC Qingdao – September 19-25  2016
SWC Final, Melbourne – December 4-11 2016