Oman to host 2021 Youth Sailing Worlds

World Sailing has confirmed the 50th Youth Sailing World Championships presented by Hempel will be held in 2021 on December 11-18 at Mussanah Sports City, Oman. This is the second attempt at the 50th edition after the COVID-19 pandemic required the cancellation of the 2020 Youth Worlds to be held in Salvador, Brazil.

Mussanah Sports City has played host to several Olympic class sailing events, including the 2013 Laser World Championships and the 2015 RS:X World Championships. In April this year the venue hosted the 2021 Mussanah Open Championship, a Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualification event for African and Asian nations.

Located approximately 62 miles north of Muscat International Airport, Mussanah is a purpose-built sporting venue, capable of hosting large-scale events and facilitating hundreds of athletes. During the champioship, temperatures are expected to be around 75°F on average with the wind strength to be approximately 10-17 knots.

“For the last five decades, the Youth Sailing World Championships have provided young athletes from all around the world with the opportunity to showcase their talent and test themselves against the very best opposition,” said Quanhai Li, World Sailing President.

World Sailing received two high-quality bids to host the 2021 Youth Worlds, with Oman selected ahead of Valletta, Malta by a Youth Worlds Evaluation Panel before final approval by the Board of Directors.

“The sailors at the Youth Worlds are the future stars of our sport and we aim to provide the best possible experience for them,” said David Graham, Chief Executive Officer at World Sailing. “We were really impressed with both Oman’s and Malta’s bids, and it was a tough choice for the Evaluation Panel, with both venues demonstrating the expertise to host a memorable championship.”

The last Youth Sailing World Championships were held in Gydnia, Poland in 2019, where 409 sailors from 66 nations competed across nine youth events, including the Boy’s and Girl’s divisions of the 29er, 420, RS:X and Laser Radial, as well as the Mixed Multihull, the Nacra 15.

Planning for this year’s edition of the event has taken into consideration any relevant precautions required for everyone traveling to Oman, with further information regarding the event to be announced in due course.

MORE: In the absence of the Notice of Race, which will confirm the events and equipment for the 2021 Youth Sailing Worlds, here is the information that US Sailing has shared for their qualifiers:

• Boy’s One Person Dinghy – ILCA 6
• Girl’s One Person Dinghy – ILCA 6
• Boys’ Two Person Dinghy – i420
• Girls’ Two Person Dinghy – i420
• Boys’ Skiff – 29er
• Girls’ Skiff – 29er
• Mixed Multihull – Nacra 15
• Boy’s Windsurfer – iQFoil*
• Girl’s Windsurfer — iQFoil*

*It is anticipated that the Windsurfer equipment at the 2021 Youth Worlds may not be the iQFoil, however, US Sailing will use iQFoil results for the US athlete selection.

About the Youth Worlds:
First held in Sweden in 1971, the Youth Sailing World Championships are World Sailing’s flagship event for youth sailors.

Past notable winners include American’s Cup skippers Chris Dickson (NZL), Russell Coutts (NZL) and Dean Barker (NZL); Olympic medallists Nathan Outteridge (AUS), Iain Jensen (AUS), Robert Scheidt (BRA), Amelie Lux (GER), Ben Ainslie (GBR), Iain Percy (GBR), Alessandra Sensini (ITA), Elise Rechichi (AUS) and Tessa Parkinson (AUS); and The Ocean Race sailors Stuart Bannatyne (NZL) and Richard Clarke (CAN). The most successful Youth World Champions are Sally Cuthbert (GBR) and Zofia Klepacka (POL), having won four successive titles in the Laser II and Mistral respectively.

Following the success of their athletes at the 2019 edition, Spain is the current holder of the Nations Trophy, awarded annually to the top-performing nation at the Youth Worlds.

Source: World Sailing, US Sailing