Sailing the NACRA 17 is the best opportunity for females to go foiling

by 49er and Nacra 17 Sailing 28 Oct 09:25 PDT

If you're a woman who wants to get into high-performance foiling, there's one boat that makes more sense than any other: the NACRA 17.

No other Olympic class offers the same mix of speed, teamwork, and access to elite-level competition — and no other foiling pathway gives women such a realistic route to the top.

Why NACRA 17 Helming Works

Foiling boats are powerful. Once they're up and flying, the apparent wind builds dramatically, loads go up, and the physical demand skyrockets. In most foiling single-handers, that power favors size — heavier, stronger sailors can sheet harder and hold the foils down longer.

The NACRA 17 changes that dynamic. Because it's a mixed-gender class, the power can be shared. The crew handles the big loads with both hands on the sheets, while the helm — often the woman — drives, trims, and makes the tactical calls. That partnership lets women helm at the very highest level of Olympic sailing, without being physically limited by the demands of single-handed foilers.

And it works. Every female sailor who has committed fully to the NACRA 17 has quickly reached the elite group — names like Lina Senholt, Sinem Kurtbay, and 2024 European Champion Willemijn Offerman prove the pathway is real and repeatable.

The Right Fit for Real-World Athletes

For smaller or lighter sailors who find the 49erFX on the edge of physical viability, the NACRA 17 opens the door to foiling performance without compromise. The boat's higher righting moment and heavier platform mean total crew weight is less critical, and a medium-to-large male crew paired with a smaller female helm often lands right in the performance sweet spot.

In short, the NACRA 17 is the only Olympic foiling class where "normal-sized" sailors can go full foiling and compete on even terms.

Durable, Affordable, and Proven

The NACRA 17 is now one of the most durable and consistent boats in Olympic sailing. The early design bugs are long gone — today's boats are tough, reliable, and built to last.

At the 2025 World Championship in Cagliari, the top-performing teams proved just how long these boats stay competitive:

• John Gimson and Anna Burnet won the event using a boat built in 2021.
• Maria Giubilei and Gianluigi Ugolini took silver on a 2023 platform.
• Willemijn Offerman and Scipio Houtman earned bronze sailing a boat from 2019.
• Brinn Liddell and Rhiannan Brown raced a 2018 platform — still fast enough to perform at world level and take 4th place in Italy.

That's a six-year span of competitive equipment at the very top of the fleet — a rare thing in Olympic sailing. Normally, sailors prefer brand-new gear for windy, high-load events because stiffness and freshness can make a difference. But the NACRA 17 bucks that trend: it stays competitive year after year, even in challenging conditions.

That longevity also means better value. Second-generation boats often sell for around €10,000-€12,000, giving new teams an affordable, proven entry point into high-performance foiling.

A Guided Start: The Tuning Guide

Getting up to speed has never been easier. Olympic gold medalist Santiago Lange has written a full NACRA 17 tuning guide, published here. It covers setup, alignment, control systems, and the entire evolution of what makes these boats go fast and is accompanied by some tutorial videos made by some well-established Nacra 17 sailors, such as an example below:

For new teams, it's essentially a ready-made development program — 18 months of learning distilled into one document. It's your shortcut to a fast, confident start in the class.

Built to Grow with You

The NACRA 17's flexibility is one of its hidden strengths. The control systems can be customized for either sailor to helm or crew, and the setup allows teams to refine their ergonomics as they develop. It's an ideal training ground for the next generation of professional sailors headed toward SailGP, America's Cup, and other foiling leagues.

The boat rewards commitment, not brute force — and that's exactly what makes it such an appealing platform for talented, ambitious female sailors.

The Bottom Line

If you're serious about foiling — really foiling — the NACRA 17 is the place to start. It's the most accessible Olympic foiling platform, the most affordable to enter, and the most effective way for women to compete on equal footing at the highest level of the sport.

You'll learn the skills that define modern high-performance sailing — balance, flight control, coordination, and speed under pressure — all while racing in one of the most exciting classes in the world.

So, if you're ready to fly, join the class that's built for it.

Visit www.nacra17.org to learn how to get started, find used boats, and read the full tuning guide.