Sailing

In sailing athletes harness the wind to steer a boat, a windsurf board or a kite around a course of marks as fast as possible. The Olympics feature the single-handed ILCA dinghy, the two-person 49er and Nacra 17, iQFoil windsurfing and kiteboarding.

History

Yacht racing began in the Netherlands and England in the seventeenth century. The America's Cup, first sailed in 1851, is the oldest trophy in international sport. World Sailing was founded in 1907, and sailing has been on the Olympic programme since 1900.

Major competitions

The Olympic Games, class world championships, the America's Cup and the round-the-world Ocean Race and Vendée Globe.

Sailing in the Turkic world

Türkiye's Aegean and Mediterranean coasts — Bodrum, Marmaris, Çeşme — are centres of international regattas and sailing schools. In Hungary, the Kékszalag (Blue Ribbon) race around Lake Balaton, held since 1934, is one of Europe's biggest lake races, and Zsombor Berecz won Olympic silver in the Finn class at Tokyo 2020. Sailing clubs also operate on the Caspian coast in Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.