Train to Paris 2024 arrives in Halifax

The top Olympic sailors in the world in the 49er (Men’s Skiff) and 49erFX (Women’s Skiff) Olympic classes as well as in Nacra 17 (Mixed Multihull) will competes August 31-September 5 at the 2022 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 World Championships in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

One hundred forty-one teams will be racing on St. Margarets Bay which includes Canada’s Tokyo 2020 Olympians Ali ten Hove and Mariah Millen in 49erFX, and Will Jones and Evan DePaul in 49er.

Overall, Canada will be represented by a total of 14 teams and 28 athletes, including Sail Canada National Team members and Nova Scotia’s local favorites Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance who won the bronze medal at the 2021 49erFX European Championships and posted the best Canadian performance ever at last year’s 49erFX World Championships with a 6th-place finish.

For athletes pursuing the Olympics, the World Championships are a critical piece of the journey. For the USA, it’s the annual opportunity to qualify for the US Sailing Team, an important check-in with the international fleets on the way to Paris 2024, and the time for a fresh reset of world rankings.

In the field will be six entrants with US Sailing Team status along with 11 other teams hoping to reach that plateau which translates to greater campaign support. Prominent among the team members are Tokyo 2020 Olympians Steph Roble/ Maggie Shea (49erFX) and Riley Gibbs who returns to the Nacra 17 with 470 Olympic crew Lara Dallman-Weiss.

The USST is also using trialing a team house concept near the venue where the athletes can come for meals, physical therapy, weather briefings, and find relaxation and community with their fellow teammates.

“It takes a complete team, on and off the water, to win at the Olympic level and US Sailing is taking the opportunity at these larger Olympic events to build a support team commensurate with our athletic team,” notes Paul Cayard, Executive Director of U.S. Olympic Sailing.

A test for USA will be whether their top 49er teams – Ian Barrows/ Hans Henken, Andrew Mollerus/ Ian MacDiarmid, and Nevin Snow/ Mac Agnese – have risen to the international level in the only event the country failed to qualify for at Tokyo 2020.

Race details – YouTube – Facebook

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 26-August 11

Details: https://www.paris2024.org/en/the-olympic-games-paris-2024/