Almost 100 sailors from 28 nations are all set for the 2019 Para World Sailing Championships in Puerto Sherry, El Puerto de Santa María, Cadiz, Spain from 1-7 July.
The 2.4mR, Hansa 303 Men and Women and the RS Venture Connect, which was first seen at the Para Worlds last year, all return for 2019.
The Hansa 303 Men’s fleet is the biggest in the competition, with 37 sailors involved – three more than last year. They will race in a split fleet and 10 boats will progress to the Medal Race.
Australian Chris Symonds clinched the 2018 gold after winning the final race. Having also won silver in 2017, he will be eyeing another podium finish and will certainly prove tough to beat this week.
Competing for Britain will be Rory Mckinna from the Clyde Cruising Club
There will be 12 sailors racing in the Hansa 303 Women’s class, with all three of last year’s medal-winners back seeking more glory.
Last year’s final race saw a straight battle between Violeta del Reino (ESP), Ana Paula Marques (BRA) and Genevieve Wickham (AUS). Marques won the race to seal the gold medal.
After a successful first year at the Worlds in 2018, the RS Venture Connect fleet will see 10 teams battling it out, with only four of them returning from last year.
Britain’s Will Street and Johnny Currell, gold medallists in Sheboygan, are back to see if they can clinch consecutive world titles.
The 22-strong contingent contains numerous Paralympians, most notably the most successful in Paralympic history, Damien Seguin of France.
Having won Para Worlds bronze in 2017 and silver in 2018, Seguin, who took gold in Athens 2004 and Rio 2006 and silver in Beijing 2008 in the same class, will be keen to top the fleet this time around.
As with the Hansa 303 Men’s fleet, the 2.4mR will hold a final Medal Race for the top 10 competitors.
The racing is set to start officially at 12:00 hrs on Wednesday 3 July.
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