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The new edition of The Case Book is a revision of the previous edition which reflects changes in The Racing Rules of Sailing for 2009-2012 (RRS), which came into force on 1 January 2009. In line with one of ISAF's key stated objectives, to "establish, supervise, interpret and amend the rules regulating sailboat racing", the RRS are revised and published every four years. In order to maximize the understanding of the rules, ISAF has been publishing interpretations of the RRS for over 40 years in The Case Book, which provides details on the application of the rules to around 100 scenarios.

Click here to download the The Case Book for 2009-2012.

The release of The Case Book for 2009-2012 follows a complete review of all the cases previously published, along with eight new cases adopted by the ISAF Council since the publication of the previous edition. The principal aims of the Cases are to clarify an important meaning in a rule or to increase the understanding of a complex rule. For sailors, from club level right up to Olympic medallists, it is an essential aid to gaining mastery of the rules, whilst for race officials it is a crucial tool in establishing and maintaining consistency in decision-making.

Dick ROSE, chairman of the Case Book Working Party, said: "We are delighted to publish The Case Book for 2009-2012 and make it available for all sailors to download from the ISAF website. Over many years the Case Book has been refined and improved to maximize its usefulness for both sailors and officials. Hundreds of hours of work have gone into preparing The Case Book for 2009-2012 and I would like to thank the other members of our Working Party that have made its publication possible."

The Case Book for 2009-2012 was prepared by the Case Book Working Party which consists of Chairman Dick ROSE, Bill BENTSEN, Josje HOFLAND-DOMINICUS, Trevor LEWIS and Bo SAMUELSSON.

New cases may be added each year in November during the ISAF Annual Conference, and sometimes cases are revised or deleted. Case Book Supplements are issued at the start of each year and published on the ISAF website. In addition, each year the version of the Case Book that appears on the ISAF website will be revised to include new cases and to reflect any other changes made in that year's annual supplement.

The latest and archive versions of The Racing Rules of Sailing and The Case Book are available from the ISAF Documents & Rules area at www.sailing.org/docs under 'Racing Rules of Sailing'.