Idea from FIS-Waldner after a flood of cancellations: Ski racing will soon be just like sailing? This is how regattas work

FIS race director Markus Waldner said in Beaver Creek (USA) after speed cancellation number 5 that a race on Thursday could actually have been held in the best weather: “We must take an example from the sailors in skiing – they sail when the wind is strongest .”

The wind window as a decisive factor

Organize ski races such as sailing regattas? Blick does the checking and explains how sailing events are organized. Call the Swiss Sailing Team, the national organization for top sport for elite and juniors. Media director Lori Schüpbach says: “In sailing, everyone involved is used to dealing with the wind. By the way: You don’t sail when the wind is strongest, but when the wind is at its best.”

The ideal wind force is the crucial element for a regatta start. For certain competitions, the announcement already indicates in which wind window the sailing will take place. This means that even in the America’s Cup – the most prestigious regatta of them all – no one can predict exactly when the Barcelona sailing will actually take place in September/October 2024.

In order to have sufficient leeway, several reserve days have been planned from the start. In the “Formula 1 of sailing” the boats are so advanced that they do not work at all, except in a small wind window. Even at the Olympic Games, despite the tight schedule, sailors get at least one spare day.

TV limited schedules

Waiting for the wind to blow is an everyday part of doing business. Will this flexibility soon also be available in skiing? It would be a revolution, especially in television. Because at the World Cup the TV contracts with the desired weekend broadcasts make the schedules quite rigid.

TV is also becoming an increasingly important factor in sailing, especially in the spectacular SailGP series, in which the races are staged as a sailing Grand Prix. With a fixed start time, live on TV on Saturday at 11:00 am.

In sailing, training sometimes takes place without replacement

But here we encounter even more differences with skis. If necessary, you can start sailing without training if this is not possible due to the weather. And in sailing there is also flexibility in the events themselves, such as the pre-regatta for the America’s Cup: if there are eight races scheduled before the last match race, but only five can be run, the missing ones will not be pushed through . but just canceled.

Schüpbach mentions another difference: “When sailing, the fleet travels together.” The fact that the later starting numbers suddenly have a clear advantage or disadvantage does not exist on the water. If the wind direction suddenly changes, this will affect the entire field. The race will resume or continue under the new conditions.

Conclusion: Skiing can learn from sailing. But not in all areas.