Excitement continues to build in Western Australia ahead of the Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships that run from 3 to 18 December and serve as the major qualifying event for sailing in the London 2012 Olympic Games.

The event will attract 1400 sailors and 850 boats from 80 nations, together with officials, coaches, families and supporters, and it is hoped the event will support the development of sailors both in Australia and around the world.

The Australian Government has thrown its support behind the event by investing funding of $8.6 million to help ensure the event is world-class and to give our athletes the opportunity to compete at sailing world championships in Australian waters.

In preparation for the championships, event organisers and a team of race officials from Royal Perth Yacht Club recently held a successful trial regatta to check that match racing – one of ten Olympic-class events that will be staged at the world championships – can take place in Fremantle’s narrow Inner Harbour.

Match racing involves two keelboats duelling ‘one-on-one’ around buoys. During the successful trial in the historic harbour, the boats were almost within touching distance for the spectators. When the racing takes place in December it should be a sight to behold for the crowds as the nearby boats tack and jostle for position against a backdrop of container ships and dockside cranes in the working harbour.

Preparations are also underway for the sixth of seven intensive training camps for developing sailing nations, which runs in Perth from 25 March to 12 April. The Emerging Nations Programme camps are a government initiative designed to help up-and-coming overseas sailors increase their skills through training with world-class sailing coaches at Fremantle Sailing Club. Sailors from a huge range of countries, including Moldova, India, Serbia and the Philippines, are taking part in the camps.

In addition to helping develop international sailing skills and giving Australian sailors the chance to race in the world championships on home waters, it is hoped the 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships will leave a legacy of race officials, administrators and volunteers who have been trained to the highest international standards, to help continue the development of sailing as a major sport in Australia.

The 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships is funded by the Australian Government, the Government of Western Australia and commercial sponsors.

The Federal Minister for Sport, Senator Mark Arbib, further demonstrated the Government’s support for sailing on 7 March by lending a hand to the Australian Women’s match racing team at Middle Harbour in Sydney.

The Australian Government recently committed an extra $250 000 to support the Australian sailing team’s preparations for the London 2012 Olympic Games. The funding is part of the Government’s Green and Gold project that has provided an extra $2.5 million to Australia’s top Olympic sports and athletes.