About Us

Vision, Mission and Values

Vision

A world in which millions more people fall in love with sailing; inspired by the unique relationship between sport, technology and the forces of nature, we all work to protect the waters of the world.

Mission

To make sailing more exciting and accessible for everyone to participate or watch; and use our reach and influence to create a sustainable future for our sport and the waters of the world:

• To create, and regulate, exciting competition events to showcase the natural power of wind-driven water sport
• To build a strong profile and image for sailing – using our key points of difference to resonate with people and give them a lifetime of sport
• To create a tangible sustainability programme that maximises the positive effect that the sailing community can have on our environment.

Values

Integrity

At the heart of what we do is the regulation of sporting competition. We define and uphold the rules of sailing so that individuals and teams can compete in an open and fair
way with each other. Defining and upholding those rules with absolute integrity is therefore central to who we are.

As an organisation, we remain politically neutral and exist to serve the interests of the whole sport.

Ambition

We are ambitious for the future of sailing and want our sport to progress and grow, achieving greater reach and impact across the globe. To do this, we need to be ambitious in our own areas of expertise, honing our knowledge and skills so that we can lead positive change and can develop as individuals.

We work to very high professional standards so that World Sailing will become a beacon for others. We must define and deliver best practice and facilitate others to perform at their best through the work that we do.

Resilience

Few people get involved with sailing because they think it’s going to be easy. It takes great focus and effort. But the rewards are huge. We each need the capacity to be able to deal with changing situations and manage periods of high intensity.

Staying positive and remaining flexible in approach are key to developing the resilience required. As an organisation, we are also focused on developing the financial resources that will secure a sustainable future for sailing.

Resourcefulness

Making the very best use of our resources is part of the DNA of every sailor. We are pragmatic people who know how to get things done and are not overly reliant in others. When we need to, we are very creative and find innovative ways to overcome challenges. To do this, we harness the broader knowledge and expertise of our colleagues.

World Sailing is responsible for:

• the promotion of the sport internationally;
• managing sailing at the Olympic and Paralympic Games;
• developing the Racing Rules of Sailing and regulations for all sailing competitions;
• the training of judges, umpires and other administrators;
• the development of the sport around the world; and
• representing the sailors in all matters concerning the sport.

The MNAs are the national governing bodies for sailing around the world and the contact details for each authority can be found on the National Federations page.

Around 120 Class Associations are members of World Sailing which means they are entitled to hold a World Championship – more information about the different types of boat and board is available on the World Sailing Classes page.