Olympic sailing: Four-way battle for the Olympics: Laser, D-Zero, Melges 14 or RS Aero?
Tatjana Pokorny
· 28.11.2018
As part of the review of Olympic boat classes for their compliance with EU anti-monopoly laws and general modernisation efforts, the World Sailing Federation will conduct a five-day test series with a total of four boat classes for the single-handed disciplines for men and women - currently Laser Standard (men) and Laser Radial (women) are Olympic until at least 2020. World Sailing wants to determine the ideal dinghies for the two core solo disciplines of Olympic sailing. An organiser is also being sought for the corresponding test series next spring between February and April. Applicants from southern Europe will be favoured in order to simplify the logistical processes and due to the better weather conditions.
The World Sailing Federation has now published a short list of the three boat classes that can challenge Laser Standard and Laser Radial in the Olympic quadrangular competition: The manufacturers of D-Zero, Melges 14 and RS Aero are vying for Olympic status with the largest Olympic class. Like the Laser, the three challengers are not foilers, but extremely lightweight designs with modern lines that are easier to handle upwind and downwind due to their planing ability and are significantly faster over the courses. There are fewer differences upwind, but the more modern sailcloths in some cases create different conditions here too. All four classes have to be ridden upwind with a lot of physical effort.
For Germany's best laser sailor Philipp Buhl, however, the scenario makes little sense: "If the monopoly position of the laser is the core problem, which is why we are now looking in other directions, then we are only shifting the problem. And another, new Olympic single-handed class would first have to achieve the kind of worldwide distribution that the laser has. That would take ten to 20 years. The appeal of the Laser class lies precisely in its one-design character, which has now been achieved with boats entered in major regattas. It is precisely the close competition on a comparatively simple boat that makes the Laser so exciting. We sailors would certainly benefit if there were several manufacturers for the Laser. That would lead to lower prices, from which we would benefit."
Once the venue for the test series has been selected, the member associations of World Sailing will be invited to nominate a male test pilot with a body weight between 75 and 90 kilograms and a female test pilot with a body weight between 55 and 70 kilograms. The decision on the single-handed dinghies for the 2024 Olympic Games is to be made at the annual meeting of the World Sailing Federation in November 2019.
Melges 14, RS Aero and Laser will be on show at the world's largest water sports exhibition, boot Düsseldorf. YACHT has long since tested all three Laser challengers. You can find our video test reports here for a better overview; you can download the tests via the links below the article. We are dedicating a repeat of this summer's thrilling World Championship final race with Philipp Buhl to the Laser:
The medal race of the laser sailors in Aarhus was one of the highlights of the World Championships from a German perspective: Philipp Buhl won his bronze medal with furious final sprint qualities
At just 54 kilograms, the lightweight dinghy fires away powerfully
The light wind dinghy from Devoti - a "weapon" especially in strong winds...
The British single-handed dinghy is lighter than an Opti and - like its competitors - is designed to attack the laser
