Today, 28 August, 2004, ISAF announced Cascais, Portugal, as the venue selected to host the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championship.
Selected from an original thirteen bidding cities, ISAF is proud to announce that Cascais, Portugal has been selected as the venue for the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships.
The selection of Cascais was announced at a press conference on the morning of Saturday 28 August at the Agios Kosmas Sailing Centre during the 2004 Olympic Sailing Competition, Athens, Greece.
Paul HENDERSON, ISAF President, opened the announcement by highlighting the impact the inaugural ISAF Sailing World Championship in 2003 had on the sport of sailing and the ongoing impact the quadrennial Championship will continue to have in the future, bringing a focus to Olympic Sailing, and providing a much closer synergy with the quadrennial Olympic Sailing Competition. The 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships will be the primary qualification event for the 2008 Olympics.
The 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships will be hosted by the Clube Naval de Cascais in association with the Portuguese Sailing Federation and the International Sailing Federation. The dates are to be finalised, but will be late July/early August to co-ordinate with the 2007 Olympic Test Event in Quingdao, China.
Paul HENDERSON went onto comment on the motivation behind the selection of Cascais over the other venues, “It is essential that the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships is a total success, across all elements of the Championship. The most important element is the wind and weather and ISAF is confident that the wind conditions in Cascais are very, very good for what we want to do. The wind is very reliable, very steady and the sun will be shining. Add to this the many years experience of the Club Naval Cascais in hosting large international events, an excellent infrastructure, a compact single event site and the spectacular backdrop of Cascais – the venue will provide a fantastic stage for our sport.”
Held as a single event, the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships combines eleven Olympic Class World Championships at the same time in one venue. With an anticipated 1000 entries, 1500 competitors, 70 nations, and Olympic Qualification it is the most significant World Championship for the Olympic classes. 2007 will also mark the occasion of the ISAF Centennary, celebrating 100 years since ISAF, or the then IYRU, was formally created. A diverse programme of celebrations will recognise the occasion, including celebrations at the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championship.
Chair of the Organizing Committee Patrick DE BARROS commented, “I think that both for Cascais and for Portugal to be able to host the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships makes us very proud. At the same time, we have to measure up to this difficult task. We have to deliver the best Championship in history, for competitors, for participants and for the public at large.”
Luis ROCHA spoke on behalf of the President of the Portuguese Sailing Federation, Carlos RIBEIRO FERREIRA, “It is a great honour for Portugal to be entrusted by ISAF to organize the 2007 ISAF World Sailing Championships for Olympic Classes and to have accepted the proposal of the Clube Naval de Cascais to hold the Championship. The Portuguese Sailing Federation will provide all the support necessary to the Organizing Committee, in order that it may be a success. There is a great tradition of the Clube Naval de Cascais holding major sailing events and this will be a great challenge. On behalf of the Portuguese Sailing Federation, I wish to welcome you all to Cascais in 2007.”
The final selection of Cascais, Portugal as the venue for the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships was made by the ISAF Executive Committee at their meeting during the 2004 Olympic Sailing Competition, and is subject to an early site visit and signing of the event contract.
Commenting on receipt of the other bids to host the Championship, Paul HENDERSON said, “ISAF was delighted at the energy and commitment in all the bids for the 2007 ISAF World Sailing Championships. An initial thirteen expressions of interest converted to seven very strong bids, which after much consideration were reduced to one – Cascais. This is an excellent indicator of the support for this event and reflects the scope and reach of this Championship, not only to the sailing world but on the global sports stage. Each city has worked really hard throughout the bidding process, they have all done an outstanding job and ISAF owes them its gratitude and respect.”
The ISAF Sailing World Championships was first held in 2003 in Cadiz, Spain. The Championship brings together the eleven Olympic sailing events and eleven Olympic classes in a combined World Championship.
For further information:
Luissa Smith, ISAF Secretariat
Email: secretariat@isaf.co.uk Web: www.sailing.org
Vasco Empis, Clube Naval de Cascais
Email: vempis@cncascais.com Web: www.cncascais.com
