In pursuit of the unprecedented

Sailing was introduced at the Atlanta 1996 Paralympic Games as a demonstrative sport, using the triplehanded Sonar, and then became a medal sport at the Sydney 2000 Games. The singlehanded 2.4mR and doublehanded SKUD 18 were added for Beijing 2008, with all three non-gender specific events held at London 2012 and Rio 2016.

All was presumed good, but insufficient worldwide participation was among the causes for the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to announce the removal of sailing from Tokyo 2020 in January 2015. World Sailing has been trying to get back in ever since.

New boats and training programs have helped to meet IPC requirements, but no removed summer sport has yet established a precedent of leaving the Games and then returning. At the recently held 2026 World Sailing Inclusion Championships, 40 countries competed in the latest effort of persuasion.

IPC First Vice President Leila Marques Mota PLY was onsite to watch racing and meet competitors. “We can see that this is a high-profile event, with lots of athletes and lots of countries involved,” she said.

World Sailing CEO David Graham added, “We’ll be a clean sport if we go back in. We’re ready on classification. We’re ready on anti-doping. We’ve got the numbers. We’ve got the integrity of the racing. Should we be lucky enough to be invited back into the Paralympic Games, the sailing community is ready.”

A decision on the sports program for the 2032 Paralympic Games is expected in 2027.