2016 kit being trialled at Worlds

The three boats in contention to be selected for Rio 2016 are at Weymouth and Portland this week as part of the IFDS 2016 equipment evaluation process. Find out how you can test sail the SKUD 18, Neo 495 and Artemis 20 this week.

London 2012 may still be a year away but thoughts are already turning to Rio 2016 with the three boats under review to be the two-person keelboat equipment in Brazil being demonstrated at the IFDS Worlds at Weymouth and Portland this week.

The three boats - SKUD 18, Neo 495 and Artemis – are available in the boat park throughout the week for sailors, coaches, instructors and IFDS officials to go out and ‘test drive’ after racing finishes.

The IFDS Equipment Evaluation Committee will also be using the opportunity to evaluate the kit in order to select the one that will be used during the 2016 Paralympic Games.

The SKUD 18, designed with the Olympic class 49er in mind, is the current Paralympic two-person equipment, having made its Paralympic debut at Beijing 2008. It was the first of the Paralympic classes to use a spinnaker as well as the first Paralympic class to specify a severely disabled sailor and a female in the crew. Both sailors are secured (with quick release) to their centreline seats for safety purposes. No fewer than 40 sailors in 20 boats are competing in the SKUD at this week’s IFDS Worlds.

The Neo 495 is 4.95m long with sailors sitting next to one another, like in some of the Access class boats, allowing able-bodied and disabled people to sail side by side. It is a good learning boat for sailors wanting to move from one person to two-person sailing but also for high-level competition. The freeboard is higher meaning that the cockpit remains largely dry regardless of wave size. It also has an 8 m2 spinnaker and the hull is designed to perform well both upwind and downwind.

The Artemis 20 is six-metre GRP high-performance keelboat with America’s Cup boat characteristics, yet is safe and manageable. With its high stability and control due to its 275kg bulb and high efficiency appendages, the Artemis 20 is identifiable by its distinctive black GRP format and style. Sailors sit in the traditional helm-crew arrangement, with canting/sliding seats and a huge 25m2 asymmetric spinnaker. The concept of the boat also lends itself well to high-level able-bodied match racing and aims to break the barriers between ability and disability providing a platform for all to get on the water together

Representatives from each class are at WPNSA this week to enable anyone and everyone to experience what each class has to offer ahead of the IFDS’ decision on which will be put forward to be the next Paralympic two-person boat. 

To arrange a time for a test sail at WPNSA this week:
SKUD18 - text / SMS David Staley on +61 3 9012 2612
Neo 495 - call Alain Inzelrac on +33 6 77312 218
Artemis - call Anthony McMahon on 07762 784112 

All the boats can be seen, and tested from, at the far pontoon in boat park.

For more information on the SKUD 18 visit www.skud.org
For more information on the Neo 495 visit www.coques-en-stock.fr (English) or www.classneo495.org (French)
For more information on the Artemis 20 visit www.vizmarine.com/uk/artemis.htm

5/7/2011 12:50