2012 Paralympics

Venue: Weymouth and Portland, Dorset
Dates: Saturday 1 September –Thursday 6 September 2012
Medal events: 3
Athletes: 80

Sailing for athletes with a disability began to develop as a competitive sport in the 1980s, just over 10 years before it joined the Paralympic programme. Mastery over ever-changing conditions on open water requires skill, tactics and nerve, all of which will be essential for competitors in the Paralympic Sailing events at London 2012.

The basics

At the Paralympic Games, athletes compete in three mixed events: the Single-Person, Two-Person and Three-Person Keelboat competitions. The design of the keelboats used in Paralympic competition provides greater stability, and the boats have open cockpits to allow more room for the sailors. Classification is used to level the playing field where there are a variety of disability levels.

Paralympic Sailing, past and present

Sailing was introduced to the Paralympic Games as a demonstration event at Atlanta in 1996. Four years later, it became a full medal sport at the Sydney 2000 Games. At London 2012, the Paralympic Sailing competition will be held in the beautiful but testing waters of Weymouth Bay on the south coast of England.

See the 2012 Paralympic Sailing website

Canadian Paralympic Trials