2021 Worlds cancelled & 2021 European Championship change dates

Dear presidents of National Associations, dear sailors, dear friends,

The pandemic has done much damage to our societies and as every other organisation, the IACA constantly tries to adapt to the situation. Trying to guess the future makes no sense, we can only hope that the vaccines and health systems will help to solve this world-wide problem.

End of March, we thought that postponing our calendar by one year would be the perfect solution. Eight months later, and despite seeing some light at the end of the tunnel, we are very concerned that the 2021 season might not be back to "business as usual". Even if a form of normality is restored in say 6 months, it is still difficult to plan a trip to Florida for the World Championship in one year from now. The organizers are very concerned that this event might see a very limited participation, which would mean a significant financial risk for them and a negative impact on the image of our class. Viewed from the IACA committee, an event in which not everyone is allowed to participate can't be a good thing.

As a logical consequence, we have decided that our class will have no World Championships in 2021. Future dates for World Championships that we already allocated are still being debated between the IACA committee and the national associations of USA, France and Italy. There are many variables to consider, and another one-year shift is not a viable solution due to dates collisions with other events, eg the Olympics 2024 in France. We will communicate a schedule as soon as possible.

Because of a date collision with the 2021 Optimist European Championship being organized in a nearby club, the organizing Club Náutico Puerto Sherry (Cadiz) has asked us to change the dates of the Euro 2021 in Cadiz, which is now scheduled for 3-10 July 2021. This was not an easy decision to take, but we found it a good idea to avoid fighting for racing areas and ramps with 300 Optimists and 300 Ribs :-). The club is working hard to obtain good deals on nearby hotels to alleviate the date change. On the positive side, this gives everyone the opportunity to have their family with them during and after this event and enjoy holidays on the sunny Andalusia region.

I feel sorry for our American friends, I hope everyone will understand our decisions and be able to adjust schedules for 2021.

Stay healthy !

Charles and the IACA committee