A wind-powered water sport in which crews race specialised boats around a course defined by buoys.
Origin and rules
Recreational sailing emerged in 17th-century Netherlands, where “jachts” became prestige craft. The first yacht club, founded in Cork in 1720, formalised the sport. Crews race wind-powered vessels around a marked course, navigating with strategy and tactics.
How it plays
Olympic classes include dinghies, skiffs, foiling craft, and windsurfers. Crews work upwind and downwind legs, often in fleet racing with multiple boats. Scoring uses a points system across many races; lowest total wins.
Competition
The America’s Cup is the sport’s most famous trophy, raced sporadically since 1851. World Sailing runs world championships in each class. Sailing has been an Olympic sport since 1900.
Find more sports by letter
Sailing starts with S and ends with G. Browse other sports along the same letter.
Sports that contain a letter from "Sailing":