Three Gold and a Bronze won by GBR at the inaugural World Sailing Inclusion Championships 2025 hosted by the Sultanate of Oman and organized by Oman Sail.
As has been the case for the entire week, the 127 participants from 28 nations were able to showcase the skill and tactical brilliance of Para Inclusive Sailing across all four classes.
This has been an excellent event and is hopefully a catalyst for the re-inclusion of sailing by the International Paralympic Committee.
Once the waves had calmed, attention shifted to the closing ceremony and prize giving where the top three in each category received their medals from guest of honour H.E. Dr. Laila bint Ahmed Al-Najjar, Minister of Social Development.
One Person Keelboat (Hansa 303)
Gold GBR Rory McKINNA – 10 pts
Silver POR João PINTO – 11 pts
Bronze JPN Takumi NIWA – 12 pts
Two Person Keelboat (RS Venture Connect)
Gold POL Piotr CICHOCKI P and Olga GORNAS-GRUDZIEN P – 9 pts
Silver ESP Pau Toni HOMAR P and Ramon GUTIERREZ P – 16 pts
Bronze GRE Vasilis CHRISTOFOROU P and Thodoris ALEXAS P – 17 pts
Intellectual Impairment (ILCA 6)
Gold GBR Murray MACDONALD – 26 pts
Silver UAE Marwan SULOOM – 27 pts
Bronze HKG Tsz Hin CHEUNG – 30 pts
Visually Impaired (FarEast 28R)
Gold GBR Lucy Hodges
Silver ESP Dani Pich
Bronze GBR Karl Haines
Full results available here . . .
Overall Final Event Commentary
In the Two Person Keelboat (RS Venture Connect), the Polish team of Piotr Cichocki and Olga Gornas-Grudzien overcame a disqualification in the sixth race to post two more wins and seal gold.
Pau Toni Homar and Ramon Gutierrez of Spain saved their best form for last, climbing the leaderboard in the final series of races to take silver with victory in the last race.
The team of Vasilis Christoforou and Thodoris Alexas in Greece-1 took bronze after finishing second in the final race while the Norwegian pair Stian Kristiansen and Elliot Finnestrand finished fourth, level on points with the Greek pair.
Final positions in the One Person Keelboat (Hansa 303) competition Great Britain’s Rory McKinna held on to win by a single point, meaning João Pinto of Portugal had to settle for silver.
Japan’s Takumi Niwa was also nearly claimed silver but ended the competition in third, one point behind Pinto. Gauthier Bril from France finished fourth, again just one point behind.
In the Intellectual Impairment (ILCA 6) event, Great Britain’s Murray Macdonald sealed gold after ending every day in first place with six wins from 10 races.
Marwan Suloom of the UAE claimed silver with four successive top two finishes – including winning the final race. Man Hong Leung from Hong Kong, China, finished third to take bronze, narrowly edging out compatriot Tsz Hin Cheung in fourth.
In the Visually Impaired (FarEast 28R), Great Britain-2 skippered by Lucy Hodges entered the final day with gold in her sights and a commanding lead to confirm first place ahead of Dani Pich of Spain in second.
Karl Haines of Great Britain was third, overtaking fellow Brit Vicki Sheen in the last series of races. Sheen finished in fourth and Kylie Forth of Australia finished fifth.
The last day of the inaugural World Sailing Inclusion Championships 2025, hosted by the Sultanate of Oman and organised by Oman Sail, brought the event to a close with dramatic racing, jubilation and a sense of triumph amongst all participants.
Dr Khamis Salim Al Jabri, CEO of Oman Sail, commented on the importance of this event to the future of Para Inclusive Sailing, saying:
“Twenty-eight nations came together on the waters of the Gulf of Oman, reaffirming that sport is a universal language, one that transcends borders and unites people under the banner of ambition and achievement.”
“This first-ever edition has written a new chapter in the global journey of Para Inclusive Sailing, placing the Sultanate of Oman—through Oman Sail—at the forefront as the first country in the world to host this championship. It marks a springboard for future editions and a pivotal step towards integrating para sailing into upcoming Olympic competitions.”
The closing ceremony concluded with a flag handover from the Sultanate of Oman to 2026 hosts, the city of Portimão in Portugal.
