Progress achieved at Paris 2024

For the first time ever, the Paris 2024 Olympics will have the same number of men and women competing in sailing events, along with the same number of events for both genders. Getting to this point has been a long time coming… here’s a statement by ISAF (now World Sailing) President Paul Henderson from April 3, 2002:

Over the years, I have often grappled with how to properly position Women in Sailing, both competitively and administratively. I have always come to the position that I do not support women as an absolute but support their involvement because it promotes all of sailing for if the Women are involved the Men and Youth will also be there.

In 1988, ISAF obtained a separate class for women in the Olympics. I agonized over whether this was good for sailing to segregate sailors by gender. After much debate it became clear that if we did not give women their separate event, they would not get Member National Authority (MNA) and government support or funding for Women’s Sailing in most of our 130 countries.

Since that time, ISAF has been able to obtain four events of 11 in the Olympic Games for women and raised the total participation from 19% in Atlanta 1996 to a guaranteed over 35% in Athens 2004.

Personally, I am a strong supporter of having at least one mixed doubles event as that would send a strong message that we are for Men and Women competing together but that is for another time.

Editor’s note: The first mixed event came in Rio 2016 with the Nacra 17 multihull.

Paris 2024 Olympic Sailing Program:
Men’s One Person Dinghy – ILCA 7
Women’s One Person Dinghy – ILCA 6
Mixed Two Person Dinghy – 470
Men’s Skiff – 49er
Women’s Skiff – 49erFX
Men’s Kiteboard – Formula Kite Class
Women’s Kiteboard – Formula Kite Class
Men’s Windsurfing – iQFOiL
Women’s Windsurfing – iQFOiL
Mixed Multihull – Nacra 17

Venue: Marseille, France
Dates: July 28-August 9

Details:
• Paris website: https://www.paris2024.org/en/the-olympic-games-paris-2024/
• World Sailing microsite: https://paris2024.sailing.org/