Rio de Janeiro will host the 2nd edition of the Sailing World Cup, which begins next Thursday (19) and will bring together 40 countries in Guanabara Bay.
The event, which has a format different from the traditional one in the sport, brings together teams made up of eight to ten crew members aboard SSL47 model boats. The competition — officially called the SSL Gold Cup — runs until December 13.
"Hosting this competition has a special meaning, as it is a return to the setting of the 2016 Olympic Games. The World Cup requires a great deal of teamwork, strategy, and cohesion. We will have the opportunity to compete in front of our home crowd," said Robert Scheidt, captain of the Brazilian team, in a statement to the event's press office.
The SSL (the worldwide league of sailors) created the World Cup to pit complete teams against each other, with the best sailors from each country competing together, all in the same boat, provided by the organization itself.
Instead of individual or two-person classes with boats of different sizes, the intention is to give everyone equal conditions and crown the country that performs best in the challenges that a regatta in a larger boat demands. The athletes compete in uniforms bearing the colors of their nation.
In the first edition of the World Cup, in 2023, in Gran Canaria, Spain, Hungary won the title by beating Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain in the final regatta. Brazil finished the competition in eighth place.
The last three spots in the tournament are being decided this weekend in a pan-American qualifier in Rio de Janeiro, with the participation of the national teams of Mexico, Cuba, Bermuda, El Salvador, Uruguay, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and Antigua and Barbuda.