Sailing is a popular sport and recreational activity in Australia with its varied coastline and often warm climate.

Australian Sailing Australian Sailing is recognised by World Sailing as the governing body for the sport of sailing in Australia. It formed in 1950 as the Australian Yachting Federation at a meeting at the Royal St. Kilda Yacht Club. It is responsible for the ad ...

is the peak body in charge of sailing as recognised by the

International Sailing Federation International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

In 2017-18 there were over 80,000 registered sailors and over 16,000 events held across the country.

Clubs

Sailing Clubs are common in Australia. Large cities have significant numbers of clubs catering to boats from off the beach dinghys to serious ocean racing.

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

for example, has over 40 sailing clubs. Most moderate sized towns with sailable water nearby have a sailing club. Many clubs hold weekly races, annual championships and annual races.

Sailing Associations

Australia has a large number associations ranging from one design class associations, which sail boats bound by strict rules to open associations for development and broad communities of boats. Associations are generally at a national level with state based subsidiaries, although some associations are state based where they represent classes or communities that are only found in one state. In 2019, Sailing Australia affiliated ### class and other associations, although not all class associations are affiliated. Associations often hold annual state and national championships.

Major Events

The Sydney Hobart Yacht Race is the premier blue water Australian race, starting on Sydney Harbour on Boxing Day every year. The race attracts a wide variety of boats from supermaxi yachts to small private boats. The race was first held in 1945. The Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race starts on 27 January in Port Phillip Bay. Racers trace a course down the rugged west coast of Tasmania and along the south coast to Hobart.

Hamilton Island Race Week Hamilton Island Race Week is a keelboat regatta set against the backdrop of the Whitsunday Islands, on Queensland's Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reef ...

held in the

Whitsunday Islands The Whitsunday Islands are 74 continental islands of various sizes off the central coast of Queensland, Australia, north of Brisbane. The northernmost of the islands are off the coast by the town of Bowen, while the southernmost islands are ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

in August is Australia's largest offshore regatta attracting over 250 boats.

Historical racing events

Australia hosted the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne and the

2000 Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

in Sydney including the respective sailing events. In 1983,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

sailing in

Australia II ''Australia II'' (KA 6) is an Australian 12-metre-class America's Cup challenge racing yacht that was launched in 1982 and won the 1983 America's Cup for the Royal Perth Yacht Club. Skippered by John Bertrand, she was the first successful ...

defeated the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

in the

America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one f ...

, ending their 132-year stranglehold on the cup. This is considered one of the greatest moments in Australian sports history. The following America's Cup was held in 1987 in Perth with Australia losing the cup.

Sailing around the states

Australian Capital Territory

Competitive sailing is based around

Lake Burley Griffin Lake Burley Griffin is an artificial lake in the centre of Canberra, the capital of Australia. It was completed in 1963 after the Molonglo River, which ran between the city centre and Parliamentary Triangle, was dammed. It is named after Walte ...

in Canberra.

New South Wales

Sydney is a mecca for sailing with

Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...

Botany Bay Botany Bay (Dharawal: ''Kamay''), an open oceanic embayment, is located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, south of the Sydney central business district. Its source is the confluence of the Georges River at Taren Point and the Cook ...

and

Pittwater Pittwater is a semi-mature tide dominated drowned valley estuary, located about north of the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia; being one of the bodies of water that separate greater Metropolitan Sydney from the Ce ...

providing abundant sheltered water for sailing races for boats from small dinghys to large keel boats. Australia Day regatta is held on the 26th of January every year. It is the world's oldest continuously held regatta, first held in 1837. Sailing was popular in Sydney from as early as 1900.

Joshua Slocum Joshua Slocum (February 20, 1844 – on or shortly after November 14, 1909) was the first person to sail single-handedly around the world. He was a Nova Scotian-born, naturalised American seaman and adventurer, and a noted writer. In 1900 he wr ...

commented in his account of his first around the world voyage that sailing was a popular sport.

Queensland

Sailing on

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

offer excellent cruising.

Brisbane to Gladstone yacht race The Brisbane to Gladstone yacht race is held annually, starting on Good Friday. The premier blue water classic begins from Shorncliffe in Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia, and finishes in Gladstone Harbour. Yachts compete for the Courier M ...

Bay to Bay yacht race

South Australia

There are a number of off the beach sailing clubs along Adelaide's metropolitan coastline on the Eastern side of the

Gulf St Vincent Gulf St Vincent, sometimes referred to as St Vincent Gulf, St Vincent's Gulf or Gulf of St Vincent, is the eastern of two large inlets of water on the southern coast of Australia, in the state of South Australia, the other being the larger Sp ...

with other clubs at major towns along the coast. Major yacht clubs are located in Marinas around Port Adelaide. The

Lake Eyre Lake Eyre ( ), officially known as Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre, is an endorheic lake in east-central Far North South Australia, some north of Adelaide. The shallow lake is the depocentre of the vast endorheic Lake Eyre basin, and contains the ...

Yacht Club is notable as it sits on a dry lake, which is only infrequently filled. In 2010, it held a regatta for the first time in over 20 years. South Australia offers excellent cursing grounds within the Spencer's Gulf and St Vincent's Gulf with numerous islands, and the coats of the Eyre, Yorke and Fleurieu peninsulas as well as the coast of

Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island, also known as Karta Pintingga (literally 'Island of the Dead' in the language of the Kaurna people), is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest ...

Tasmania

Sailing in Tasmania focuses on the sheltered waters of the Derwent River around

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

as well as in Launceston. The

Royal Hobart Regatta The Royal Hobart Regatta is a series of aquatic competitions and displays held annually in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia and is Tasmania's oldest sporting event. The regatta began in 1838. The event runs for three days and incorporates a publi ...

is held on the Derwent River annually in February. It was first held in 1838 and involves a wide range of water sports including sailing. The Launceston to Hobart Yacht Race is held annually beginning on 27 December.

Northern Territory

Darwin has two yacht clubs, the Darwin Sailing Club and the Dinah Beach Cruising Yacht Association. The Darwin Ambon Yacht Race is held in August annually.

Victoria

In Victoria, sailing is centred on

Port Phillip Bay Port Phillip (Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, narrow channel known as The Rip, and is completel ...

and

Western Port Bay Western Port, (Boonwurrung: ''Warn Marin'') commonly but unofficially known as Western Port Bay, is a large tidal bay in southern Victoria, Australia, opening into Bass Strait. It is the second largest bay in the state. Geographically, it is do ...

. Sail Melbourne is an annual sailing Regatta run by Yachting Victoria at various yacht clubs around Port Phillip Bay. Sail Melbourne is a Grade 1 International Sailing Federation event and the is the largest off the beach regatta in the Southern Hemisphere.

Western Australia

Sailing centred on the Swan River in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

. The Fremantle to Bali yacht race and rally is a 2500 km yacht race starting in May.

References

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External links

Australian Sailing
the peak body for Sailing in Australia
Australian Sailing Team