The KielerWoche sailing festival opened in Kiel, Germany on Tuesday with 39 nations registered for participation.

This Para World Sailing Championship will see 80 or more sailors racing in three different classes.

The participants will include world champions, Paralympic medalists and offshore sailors from different nations. They’re eight new nations registered for the championship this year. The three classes of fleets for the race are Open 2.4 Norlin OD, women’s Hansa 303 and Men’s Hansa 303.

Racing will start from June 21st at 12:00 and will conclude on 25th June. Each fleet will have to participate in ten races during these five days.

World Sailing President Kim Andersen addressed the sailors during the opening ceremony and said that this year’s KielerWoche championship is important for the World Sailing as the event includes the Para world sailing Championships.

He said that adding Para world championships are vital for World sailing as it is necessary to prove to the International Paralympic Committee the steps taken for the advancement of the Para world sailing after the exclusion of Para world sailing from the 2020 Paralympic Games to be held in Tokyo.

He is very pleased to see that a record number of nations are competing this year and new sailors will be making their debut through this championship. He also thanked the sailors for their support. Anderson said that even though the sailing community is facing adversity they are united by their passion and this is a great inspiration.

The 2.4 Norlin OD will have 45 sailors to battle the race this is an Open gender one person Keelboat category for sailors with minimum disability.

The Women’s Hansa 303, a One Person Keelboat category for sailors with a minimum disability will see contenders like Singapore’s Qian Yin Yap and Spain’s VioletadelReine. The Men’s Hansa 303 will have 31 competitors.