Nations qualify for Rio 2016 at Para World Sailing Championships
by Daniel Smith 3 Dec 2015 12:59 GMT
3 December 2015
Para World Sailing Championships final day © Teri Dodds
Thirteen nations have qualified for places at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Sailing Competition following the Para World Sailing Championships being held out of the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria in Williamstown, Melbourne, Australia.
Seven One-Person Keelboat (2.4mR) spots, five Two-Person Keelboat (SKUD18) places and six Three-Person Keelboat (Sonar) slots were allocated to the following nations at the 2015 Para World Sailing Championships:
One-Person Keelboat - 2.4mR
Austria
Argentina
Czech Republic
Italy
New Zealand
Sweden
Spain
Two-Person Keelboat - SKUD18
Netherlands
New Zealand
Poland
Singapore
Spain
Three-Person Keelboat - Sonar
Ireland
Israel
Italy
New Zealand
Spain
USA
National Paralympic Committees have until 1 March 2016 to confirm the qualification slots they will use. Any unused slots will be reallocated by 1 April 2016. Find out more on Rio 2016 Paralympic Games qualification here [PDF].
Away from the road to Rio, the competition concluded with Damien Seguin (FRA) taking gold in the 2.4mR with Dan Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch (AUS) defending their title in the SKUD18. And there were some wild celebrations in the Sonar as John Robertson, Steve Thomas and Hannah Stodel (GBR) snapped up the title.
Several athletes will remain in Williamstown for the next ten days with several crews competing at Sailing World Cup Melbourne. From thereon in it's into 2016, Paralympic year, and sailors will have their eye on the 2016 Para World Sailing Championships in Medemblik, the Netherlands along the way.