Equipment Committee make recommendations on Paris 2024 Equipment

World Sailing's Equipment Committee at the 2019 Mid-Year Meeting © World Sailing

World Sailing's Equipment Committee met on Saturday 18 May at the 2019 Mid-Year Meeting in London, Great Britain.

The Equipment to be used at the Paris 2024 Olympic Sailing Competition was at the top of the agenda and the Committee debated the subject at length before voting on what recommendations they will put forward to World Sailing's Council on Sunday 19 May.

Paris 2024 Equipment

Three Events and Equipment were confirmed for the Paris 2024 Olympic Sailing Competition ahead of the Mid-Year Meeting with Equipment decisions to be made for the remaining seven Events. At the 2018 Annual Conference, the following Events were approved:

• Men's Windsurfer - RS:X*
• Women's Windsurfer - RS:X*
• Men's One Person Dinghy - TBC
• Women's One Person Dinghy - TBC
• Mixed Kiteboard - TBC
• Mixed Two Person Dinghy - TBC
• Women's Skiff - 49erFX
• Men's Skiff - 49er
• Mixed Two Person Multihull - Nacra 17
• Mixed Two Person Offshore Keelboat - TBC

The Men's and Women's Windsurfer were put under the re-evaluation process. The authority for the re-evaluation procedure is World Sailing's Board of Directors who shall make the final recommendations to World Sailing's Council.

The second process is the selection of new Equipment. For new Events and for those where the outcome of an earlier re-evaluation is to select Equipment.

Events under this process include the Mixed Two Person Dinghy, the Mixed Kiteboard, the Mixed Two Person Offshore Keelboat and the Men's and Women's One Person Dinghy following its re-evaluation.

World Sailing's Equipment Committee moved straight into the debate on Paris 2024 Equipment and agreed that votes for their recommendations to World Sailing's Council would be secret.

Men's and Women's One Person Dinghy

Of eight tenders received, World Sailing conducted five days of sea trials with the Laser, D-Zero, Melges 14 and the RS Aero being selected to take part in them. Real Club Nautico Valencia hosted representatives of each manufacturer and class as well as an Evaluation Panel and 11 international sailors with Olympic and World Championship experience.

The four boats were put through their paces and each boat was evaluated against the criteria in the Invitation to Tender and the Evaluation Panel looked into multiple areas to address suitability for the Event.

The Evaluation Panel concluded that there were two suitable items of Equipment for the Event - the RS Aero Equipment presented by RS Sailing and the Laser equipment presented by the International Laser Class Association (ILCA).

The Equipment Committee held a lengthy debate on the subject with feedback given on the Evaluation Panel Report with numerous questions from the Committee answered by Chair Dina Kowalyshyn.

Although the RS Aero and Laser were the recommendations from the Evaluation Panel, the Equipment Committee were able to vote for all four options. In the end, nine members voted in favour of the RS Aero, three for the Laser with one abstention. The D-Zero and Melges 14 did not receive a vote.

Due to the RS Aero having a majority of the votes in the first round, it was approved as the Equipment Committee recommendation to Council for the Men's and Women's One Person Dinghy for Paris 2024.

Men's and Women's Windsurfer

The Committee discussed the Board of Directors recommendation on the Men's and Women's Windsurfer. The Board recommendation to World Sailing's Council is that they should retain the RS:X, subject to the Olympic Classes Contract, as the Men's and Women's Windsurfer at Paris 2024.

Click here for the Men's and Women's Windsurfer Equipment Re-evaluation Board Recommendation to Council

The Committee discussed the recommendation and its merits. They voted to reject the Board recommendation. The Equipment Committee recommendation was that the Board recommendation to Council should be to "select new Equipment" as the outcome of the re-evaluation and to conduct sea trials against an updated set of criteria.

Mixed Kiteboard

In advance of the Mid-Year Meeting, World Sailing received tenders from the International Kiteboarding Association (tendering with the IKA - Formula Kite Class equipment), Fly 4 all (Tarooa) and Ozone Kites.

Fly 4 all withdrew their tender and the Evaluation Panel considered the IKA Formula Kite Class and the Ozone Kites tenders in their evaluation. The Evaluation Panel shortlisted the IKA Formula Kite Class.

World Sailing's Equipment Committee recommended the IKA Formula Kite Class to Council for selection.

Mixed Two Person Dinghy

World Sailing received tenders from the Melges 15, a concept design from Melges Boat Works, and from the 470 Class Association. Melges Boat Works withdrew their application resulting in the 470 Class as the sole tenderer.

Having found the 470 Class tender compliant with all requirements, the Evaluation Panel recommended to the Equipment Committee that the 470 is selected as the Mixed Two Person Dinghy Equipment.

The Equipment Committee recommended the 470 to World Sailing's Council for selection.

Next Steps

All of the Equipment Committee recommendations will be put to World Sailing's Council on Sunday 19 May. The Council will discuss and debate the recommendations before deciding on whether to approve, reject or defer. If Council rejects the recommendation, it will conduct its own ballot process to decide on the equipment.

Any changes to the Regulations that Council makes must also be ratified by our Annual General Meeting in November.

Mixed Two Person Offshore Keelboat

A verbal report on the Mixed Two Person Offshore Keelboat was given and the Committee discussed Submission M01-19 from the Board which proposes a new way forward with the procedure for selecting the Equipment.

The Submission originally proposed that World Sailing's Council shall select a list of different Equipment which it considers to meet the key criteria of the event by 31 December 2019 and then make a decision on the Equipment, selecting from the list no later than 31 December 2023.

Following the Board of Directors meeting, they proposed a date amendment from 2019 to 2020 for Equipment that meets key criteria.

The Equipment Committee approved the recommendation with the same amendment proposed from the Board.

This will go forward to World Sailing's Council on Sunday.

The Council meeting will commence at 09:00 BST on Sunday 19 May. It will be available to watch on World Sailing's YouTube Channel.