Olympic sailing: Finn sailors accuse World Sailing Federation of discrimination

In the fight to remain in the Olympics after 2020, Finn sailors are now bringing out the big guns. In an open letter to the World Sailing Association signed by the vast majority of leading Finn sailors, the main issue is discrimination. According to the traditionally heavyweight Finn athletes, the new composition of the ten sailing disciplines for the 2024 Olympic Games hardly offers male sailors over 85 kilograms in body weight any chance of Olympic participation in the future. Because the single-handed dinghy is no longer to be used in 2024 after being cancelled last winter and instead - also in an effort to achieve the gender balance demanded by the IOC - a mixed offshore event, which is yet to be defined more precisely, is to celebrate its premiere, tall and heavy sailors will be excluded from the Olympic Games in future.

In its ongoing fierce criticism of the cancellation of the Finn, the class also refers to a study published by the World Sailing Federation itself, which looked at the physical characteristics of male and female sailors at the World Championships for all Olympic disciplines in Aarhus, Denmark, last year. Various overviews clearly show that Finn sailors almost form a group of their own in terms of their height and weight and that many of them would not be able to perform well in any other existing Olympic discipline.

World Sailing's reference to the fact that Finn sailors could be accommodated in the new mixed offshore discipline in the future is of little consolation to most of them. Firstly, because entering this new discipline is likely to entail considerably higher financial costs. Secondly, because offshore sailing requires other qualities that not every Finn sailor automatically has.

The Finn sailors' open letter therefore states: "The removal of the Finn class from the Olympic programme breaks the rules of the World Sailing Federation, contradicts the principles of the Olympic Charter with regard to the desired non-discrimination of physical conditions and limits access to the Olympic Games for many sailors. We therefore call for a class such as the Finn Dinghy to be reinstated to the Olympic programme that suits male athletes over 85kg to ensure fair access to the Olympic Games for all sailors and prevent the introduction of a discriminatory decision by World Sailing."

The Finn movement will be the topic of discussion from today at the mid-year meeting of the World Sailing Federation and its members at Chelsea Football Club in London, where discussions and votes on the "equipment" for the sailing disciplines at the 2024 Olympic Games will take centre stage. "Equipment" means boat or surfboard. One of the issues to be discussed in England will be whether the Laser and Laser Radial will remain Olympic or be replaced by the RS Aero, which made a good impression on athletes and experts in a series of tests. However, the strong global spread of the Laser and the much-needed consistency of some of the pillars of sailing that are already familiar and understandable to the public are among the arguments against the swap. As such, the Laser is considered the most affordable sailing boat for Olympic sailors. It is certain that there will be passionate discussions this weekend in London. And it is also certain that there will be winners and losers in the various upcoming votes.