Sailing at 2008 Summer Games: sailing is a water sport. The aim of sailing is to control a moving sailing ship or a sail boat. The boats, which are used during sailing, move forward by the power of wind. The force of wind on the sails make the boats propel. Sailing can have many variations like racing, cruising and “day sailing”. The sailing races are held in various formats. At the international level, sailing is governed by the International Sailing Federation or the ISAF.
Sailing in the Summer Games: Sailing was introduced to the Olympic schedule in the 1900 Paris Summer Games. The event has been held regularly at the Olympics. The format of the sailing competition at the Olympics is the fleet racing format. The duration of the races varies between 30 minutes and 75 minutes. The events contested during the Olympic sailing competition are—
- 470 - Two Person Dinghy for men
- Laser - One Person Dinghy for men
- RS:X - Windsurfer for men
- Star - Keelboat for men
- 470 - Two Person Dinghy for women
- Laser Radial - One Person Ding for women
- RS:X - Windsurfer for women
- Yngling - Keelboat for women
- 49er - Skiff Mixed
- Finn - Heavyweight Dinghy Mixed
- Tornado - Multihull Mixed
Rules of Sailing: The International Sailing Federation or the ISAF is authorized to set rules for sailing at the international level. Some of the rules followed during the sailing competitions are—
The course, where the sailing race should be held, should be properly marked during the race.
The boats used in the sailing races, have to be constructed in accordance with the ISAF rules for the equipments of sailing.
There are various penalty rules, which are followed during the sailing races at the international level.
The boats cannot touch the starting mark before the commencement of the race. They are also not allowed to touch the finishing mark after the race is over.
The movements of the boats during the races are determined by the ISAF rulebook.
Any person or boat in danger should be assisted by others during the race.
Consumption of banned drugs during the race is prohibited.
During the race, the boats participating should keep clear from other boats to avoid contact and collision with each other.
The rulebook for sailing set by the ISAF specifies the ways, in which the boats can come out of an overlapping position, when there is a contact.
Interfering with other boats during the race is considered to be an offence. Such offence is penalized.
Making penalty turns during the race, is considered to be a punishable offence.
Medal winners in Sailing: Sweden, Denmark, Brazil, Austria, the United States, Great Britain, Australia, Germany and Netherlands are the leading nations in the field of sailing at the international level. Some famous sailors at the international stage of sailing competition are Sarah Ayton, Sarah Webb, Christina Otzen, Faustine Lucie Merret, Paul Bert Elvstrom , Ralph Evans , Nikolaos Kaklamanakis , Carlos Espinola , Alessandra Sensini, Yin Jian, Gal Fridman, Nick Dempsey, Ben Ainslie and Mateusz Kusznierewicz.
