Steering the Course 2022 kicks off week-long festival of women's sailing
by World Sailing 21 May 2022 18:27 AEST
51 Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía Mallorca, first event of the 2022 Hempel World Cup Series © Sailing Energy / Princesa Sofía Mallorca
Hundreds of sailors across the world will take to the water over the next 10 days as World Sailing's Steering the Course global women's sailing festival gets under way.
Female-led sailing sessions and taster courses have been organised in Croatia, Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, Slovakia and the United Kingdom, China and Japan, South Africa, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Cuba, Grenada, St. Kitts, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and many more, making this the biggest edition so far!
Activities include 'Sail with Her', 'Beat Your Fear - Just Sail' and 'A Boat Goes by a Female Gender' sessions in Slovakia led by female coaches, Hansa sailing and remote-control sailing in Japan, and 'No Buoys Allowed' in Scotland offering tasters in windsurfing, paddle sports, dinghy, keelboats and power boating all run by women.
Full details of planned activities are available here.
"The response to this year's Steering the Course has been incredible. We are so pleased to see so many Member National Authorities (MNAs) and sailing clubs around the world sign up to the event and organise activities aimed at having fun, showing the full range of opportunities available and encouraging greater participation in sailing," said Catherine Duncan, Training & Development Executive at World Sailing.
"Our aim is to open up new possibilities for women in sailing, either on the water or as a coach or instructor, see where the sport can lead and perhaps inspire the next generation of world champions."
David Graham, CEO of World Sailing, said, "We saw the positive impact of last year's debut edition of Steering the Course and this year promises to be even bigger. World Sailing is committed to creating opportunities for women and girls to get into sailing while actively encouraging more women to pursue coaching, race management and leadership roles."
"The activities held around the world show that not only is there huge interest in learning to sail and becoming a coach but great dedication from coaches and volunteers within the sailing community to growing the sport and building a pathway for talented women in sailing."
Steering the Course runs from 20 May to 29 May 2022. A Southern Hemisphere edition of Steering the Course will be held from 30 September to 9 October. To get involved, please contact training@sailing.org for more information.
Take the eSailing Challenge
A new eSailing challenge has been launched exclusively for Steering the Course. Starting on 23 May and running through until 29 May, female eSailors will be able to battle it out in three exciting locations - Barbados, Copenhagen, Denmark and Plymouth, UK - with the boats changing, from ILCA to 49er to Nacra 17 for each location. The top 20 will then advance to the eSailing World Championships semi-finals during the Steering the Course festival in October.
The 2022 eSailing Steering the Course Challenge is open to everyone and available to play now on Virtual Regatta Inshore and to download for free on Desktop, iOS or Android.