For female sailors around the world

The 2025 edition of Steering the Course, World Sailing’s global women’s sailing festival, is on May 23-June 1 with a week-long focus on #AccelerateAction in support of this year’s International Women’s Day theme.

First held in 2021, events are planned around the world throughout the week and beyond, each with the goal of promoting gender equity in sailing and creating new opportunities for women to thrive on and off the water.

Steering the Course 2025 events began on May 10 at the Rio Yacht Club in Brazil with the 4th Regata D’Elas which featured 151 women in 28 boats – including a crew of a four-year-old and 83-year-old – the youngest and oldest sailors taking part.

The fleet included many teams from previous Regatas D’Elas, showing how they have grown as sailors. Many had become skippers or important crew on board their boats. The event also had an environmental focus where there were no single-use disposable items and the sailors were invited for a talk about the Guanabara Bay environment, featuring a short documentary showing the marine life and the important role sailors have in monitoring and caring about the bay.

Next, the focus shifted to the fourth edition of the Festival Nautico Femenino at the Club de Yates Higuerillas in Concón, Chile, where more than 150 women – from two years-old to over 75 – took part. Starting with an early morning Yoga session and ice-breaking games, more than 60 girls jumped into the water to make a mandala with Stand-Up Paddle boards while others swam, and the young sailors joined in their Optimists. Later in the day, 150 women, in a variety of sailing boats, took part in two races in the ocean. The event came to a close with a celebration of sailing at the club.

The first event of the festival will be held in Sri Lanka where the Ceylon Motor Yacht Club will host racing taster sessions and STEM activities all week, alongside the Women’s Sailing Regatta which will celebrate empowerment and camaraderie as inexperienced sailors team up with seasoned pros.

The next day kickstarts a weekend of activity in Africa, Europe, and South America beginning with the Sail Africa Youth Development Foundation in Durban, South Africa organising an All Schools Racing event, the Troféu Marina Prada – Snipe Women’s Cup in São Paulo, Brazil, and Women at the Helm held at Puerto Deportivo in Valparaiso, Chile. On May 25, the Istanbul Yelken Kulubu in Istanbul, Türkiye, will stage the Optimist and ILCA Girl’s Cup.

Port City Colombo in Sri Lanka will also host free sailing taster sessions on May 28, and there will be a Hansa trial day on May 31 in Enoshima Harbour in Japan – site of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Sailing Competition. The week concludes in Cape Town, South Africa, with the first event in the Ullman Sails Women’s Series organized by the Royal Cape Yacht Club.

“Steering the Course has created pathways in sailing for thousands of women over the past four years,” said Fiona Kidd, World Sailing’s Head of International Development. “More than 56 countries have participated in or ran activities as part of Steering the Course since its inception, and this year with the theme of #AccelerateAction we are encouraging even more Sailing Clubs, Centers, Member National Authorities (MNAs), Class Associations, and volunteers to sign up to host activities as part of the two key festivals.

“The events already planned showcase the variety that sailing can offer to sail, officiate, coach and mentor, and we look forward to many more women discovering the opportunities available to them within the sport.”

World Sailing will also be hosting a free Steering the Course Development Webinar on May 28 with Hebe Haven Yacht Club and Sailability Hong Kong. The session will reflect upon five years of empowering women in sailing through Steering the Course. To register, click here.