Triumph in Portimão: Jens Kroker finishes as runner-up in the Hansa 303 World Championship

Good news from Portugal: Jens Kroker has taken second place in the single-handed category of the Hansa 303 at the World Sailing Inclusion Championships in Portimão. In this class, boats are sailed both single-handed and double-handed.

Kroker led the regatta throughout. Ahead of the final day of competition, he was just two points behind Poland’s Piotr Cichocki. In the final, Cichocki ultimately came out on top and was crowned world champion. Kroker won silver, whilst Portugal’s João Pinto took bronze. This result is Kroker’s best to date at a World Championship in the Hansa 303 class. He won a World Championship bronze medal in Australia in 2025.

For Kroker, the silver medal also sends a message within Germany: it shows “that we, as a nation, still have very good chances of winning medals and are therefore worthy of support”.

According to World Sailing A record number of 222 sailors from 40 nations were entered for the competitions held from 5 to 10 October. Medals were awarded in nine events. Conditions over the course of the week ranged from strong winds and challenging seas to lighter, more tactical races.

Will sailing return to the Paralympics?

Kroker’s success comes at a crucial time: the sailing community is hoping to be included in the programme again at the 2032 Paralympic Games in Brisbane. Sailing was last included in the Paralympics in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. The sport was not selected for Tokyo 2020.

According to A presentation by the International Paralympic Committee At the time, it did not meet the minimum criteria regarding the number of countries in which the sport was widespread and practised regularly. Efforts to have it reinstated have so far been unsuccessful.

World Sailing President Quanhai Li was also present in Portimão. At the opening ceremony, he said that every race helps to demonstrate the strength and potential of para-inclusive sailing. Leila Marques Mota, Vice-President of the International Paralympic Committee, was also in attendance.

According to Kroker, the International Paralympic Committee has confirmed that sailing once again meets all the formal requirements for inclusion. It has not yet been decided whether sailing will actually return to the programme for Brisbane 2032. Should it return, it would be the first time since its exclusion from the Paralympic programme.

Inclusive sailing is on the rise

Even setting that aside, Kroker remains confident. As managing director of the Turning Point Foundation He promotes inclusion through sailing. The number of participants in inclusive competitions is growing, he says: “I am confident that the momentum will remain positive even without the Paralympics.”

Find out more: New podcast episode with Jens Kroker promotes ‘diverse abilities’ in sailing

The next World Sailing Inclusion Championships are due to take place in Gdynia, Poland, in 2027 – alongside the World Championships for the Olympic boat classes.