Testing for Paris 2024 Olympics

A year out from Paris 2024, the world’s best sailors are in action July 9-16 at the Marseille Marina at the Paris 2024 Test Event. And like the Olympics, each nation has selected one representative for each of the ten events.

Between Olympic and world champions, as well as rising stars, most of the contenders for Olympic glory next year will be testing the waters on the French south coast. There are 254 entrants among the ten Olympic events.

“Not every Olympic sport gets a chance to compete at their venue a year out from the Games, and we’re really lucky to have this opportunity,” said Sally Barkow, US Sailing Team Head of Operations.

“We get to learn how to maximize our assets here and be as efficient as possible, we’re learning weather patterns and the structure of racecourses, and we’re taking care of logistics and operations so we can return to a familiar environment in a year for the real deal.”

For Canadian Sarah Douglas, she is looking to improve on her 6th place finish at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. “I’ve been spending a lot of time in France so far this summer and it’ll be nice to get to race at the 2024 venue,” said Douglas. “The racing will be just like at the Olympics, with one boat per class and the best of each country competing, and I expect a tight competition.”

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The USA has representatives in each of the ten events while Canada has selected entrants for the 49er, 49erFX, ILCA 6, ILCA 7, and Women’s Formula Kite Class. Here’s an event preview from World Sailing:

ILCA 7
At a regatta which is packed full of the sport’s biggest stars, the sheer scale of talent on show in the ILCA 7 will take some beating.

Olympic champion Matt Wearn (AUS), will face off against the two men who joined him on the podium in Tokyo in the Laser, Tonci Stipanovic (CRO) and Hermann Tomasgaard (NOR).

And if that was not enough, reigning world champion Jean-Baptiste Bernaz (FRA) and the man he beat in Mexico, Pavlos Kontides (CYP) are also competing.

Add in Duko Bos (NED), who won the The Netherlands World Cup at the Allianz Regatta and Michael Beckett (GBR), victorious at the Spain World Cup at the 52 Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by Iberostar, and the event will feature all the main contenders in the class.

ILCA 6
Trailing not far behind the ILCA 7 in terms of pedigree is the field in the ILCA 6, where reigning world and Olympic champion Anne-Marie Rindom of Denmark will be the one to beat.

She faces plenty of competition however, with Josefin Olsson (SWE) and Maud Jayet (SUI) both also on the start line, having scooped Olympic and world silver behind Rindom respectively.

Double world champion Emma Plasschaert (BEL), who won bronze at the World Championships last year, is another contender, while London 2012 Olympic champion Marit Bouwmeester (NED) (pictured) will look to shine at the Test Event after a strong start to the season.

49er
The class which has seen maybe the greatest turnover since Tokyo is the 49er, with none of the Olympic medallists in action in Marseille.

There is still huge pedigree in the field though, notably with reigning world champions Bart Lambriex and Floris van de Werken (NED) looking to build on the form that saw them win on home waters at the Allianz Regatta ahead of a possible hat-trick of world titles.

A year ago, they got the better of Diego Botin and Florian Trittel (ESP) and 2018 world champions Sime and Mihovil Fantela (CRO), so expect plenty of competition for the Dutch.

49erFX
There are more Olympic champions in action in the 49erFX, where Brazil’s Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze will look to cement their position at the top of the class.

With gold medals on home waters in Rio, and then again five years later in Tokyo, they appear to have nailed peaking for the big occasion, albeit without a world title since 2014.

Competition could come from the Netherlands, for whom Odile van Aanholt and Annette Deutz are the reigning world champions, while Sweden’s Vilma Bobeck and Rebecca Netzler claimed silver behind them in St. Margarets Bay.

Formula Kite Men
The introduction of kitesurfing at the Olympics is one of the most exciting aspects of Paris 2024, and the battle for the Formula Kite Men title should be ferocious.

Toni Vodisek of Slovenia is the defending world champion, but was beaten by 16-year-old world silver medallist Maximilian Maeder (SGP) (pictured) at the Spain World Cup at the 52 Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by Iberostar.

Home hopes will rest on Axel Mazella, who won bronze behind Vodisek and Maeder, and recently claimed Allianz Regatta victory over Connor Bainbridge (GBR) – a runner-up at both World Cup events this season.

Formula Kite Women
In the Formula Kite Women, Daniela Moroz (USA) has been the dominant force and comes into the event as the reigning world champion, looking to lay down a marker before a potential Olympic title in a year’s time.

As with the men, France will hope for a serious challenge, with Lauriane Nolot, the world silver medallist and winner of the Spain World Cup in action.

Ellie Aldridge (GBR) completes the World Championship podium competitors in action in Marseille, having also finished second to Nolot in Palma.

Nacra 17
The selection of Gianluigi Ugolini and Maria Giubilei for Italy, ahead of Olympic champions Ruggero Tita and Caterina Banti leaves the Nacra 17 competition wide open.

Ugolini and Giubilei won World Championship silver behind their compatriots a year ago and will now look to shine in their absence.

But the favourites may well be John Gimson and Anna Burnet (GBR), the Olympic silver medallists and two-time world champions.

Olympic bronze medallists Paul Kohlhoff and Alica Stuhlemmer (GER) and world bronze medallists Sinem Kurtbay and Akseli Keskinen (FIN) should also be right in the mix.

Mixed 470
The other mixed event at the Test Event is the Mixed 470, a new class for Paris 2024.

There has been plenty of turnover from both the 470 men and the 470 women, not least with the retirements of British pair Hannah Mills and Eilidh McIntyre.

However Olympic silver medallist Anton Dahlberg (SWE) will look to impress alongside new partner Lovisa Karlsson (pictured), while Jérémie Mion joins Tokyo bronze medallist Camille Lecointre for the hosts, with the pair having won world bronze last year.

Jordi Xammar Hernandez and Nora Brugman Cabot (ESP) beat them in Sdot Yam, winning silver, but Malte and Anastasiya Winkel have earned the spot for Germany ahead of world champions Luise Wanser and Philipp Autenrieth.

iQFOiL Men
There is plenty of intrigue around the windsurfing for men, with a pair of world champions leading the charge.

Germany’s Sebastian Kordel took the honours last year in Brest and will look to impress again in French waters.

But he will face competition from Nicolas Goyard (FRA), whose crown he took in 2022. Goyard is the brother of Tokyo silver medallist Thomas Goyard, while China’s Bi Kun won bronze in Japan.

The Dutch challenge will come from Huig-Jan Tak (pictured), the current world bronze medallist, a recent silver-medallist at the Allianz Regatta.

iQFOiL Women
As with the men, the Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist will be in action in the iQFOiL Women, with Emma Wilson (GBR) (pictured) looking to build on a strong start to the season.

Wilson took the win at the 52 Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by Iberostar, an event that gave a great idea of what we could expect in Marseille.

The top six in Palma are all coming to Marseille, including silver medallist Lucie Belbeoch (FRA) and bronze medallist Veerle Ten Have (NZL).

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