Today marks the 30-day countdown to the final stage of the 2023 World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) at the Shenzhen Bao’an Match Cup from 12-17 December, hosted by the World Match Racing Tour, China Yachting Association, the Shenzhen Municipal Administration of Culture, Media, Tourism and Sports, and the People’s Government of Bao’an District of Shenzhen.
12 skippers from nine nations the World Match Racing Tour leaderboard have qualified to compete at the 2023 WMRT Final, the winner of the event who will be crowned the official 2023 World Sailing Match Racing World Champion.
WMRT Executive Director James Pleasance visited the World Sailing Annual Conference in Malaga Spain this week to deliver a special letter of invitation from the event organisers, the Shenzhen Bureau of Sports of Boa’an District to delegates of the World Sailing conference via the Match Racing Sub-Committee;
Dear Sailing Friends from around the world,
We would like to wish the World Sailing Conference a Great Success. We are delighted to be hosting 2023 World Match Racing Tour Shenzhen Baoan Final, and we are dedicated to a successful event in December. We look forward to welcoming the world’s best match racing sailors and members of the World Sailing Family to Shenzhen!
Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports of Baoan District, Shenzhen
In response from World Sailing, Chair of the World Sailing Match Racing Sub-Committee Michael Röllich from Finland commented;
“On behalf of the World Sailing Match Racing Sub-Committee, we would like to extend our thanks to you for your dedication and continued efforts to host the Shenzhen Bao’an Match Cup/ WMRT Final in 2023. We wish you every success for the event and we look forward to developing a long term relationship with the Shenzhen Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports of Bao’an District to promote and grow the exposure of sailing and match racing in China.”
World Sailing Vice-President Cory Sertl (USA) further added;
“China is a tremendous growth market for our sport of sailing, and I wish the City of Shenzhen and the World Match Racing Tour every success for the Shenzhen Bao’an Match Cup/ WMRT Final next month. Establishing this event in the same venue for consecutive years is welcome initiative.”
There are approximately 1,200 match racing skippers that compete at match racing events around the world, and strive to become Match Racing World Champion by competing on the annual World Match Racing Tour. The 2023 WMRT season features fifteen events including the WMRT Final in Shenzhen, China. The Tour features the world’s best match racing skippers and teams including Olympic and World champions, and sailors from the America’s Cup. The Tour is the longest running global professional series in sailing, and is one of seven events recognised with ‘Special Event’ status by World Sailing, the world governing body of the sport.
The Shenzhen Bao’an Distict will also launch its first ‘World Bay Regatta’ to run at the same time as the Shenzhen Bao’an Match Cup/ WMRT Final in December. The new fleet regatta will feature sailors from the San Francisco, Tokyo, New York and Sydney bay areas, and others. The regatta will open valuable exchanges between international regions and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area for the first time. The World Bay Regatta will also promote Shenzhen as an international sports and global maritime City.
The two events will take place in the waters of Dachan Bay in the central Bao’an District area, offering the opportunity for visitors to the City and Bay area to view the sailing from the shore.
