Anticipation is building amongst sailors from around the world ahead of the first Rio 2016 test event, which will take place on 2-9 August this year. The sailing competition at Marina da Glória – which will host the Olympic and Paralympic sailing competitions two years later – will feature 324 athletes and 250 boats from 34 countries, competing in all 10 Olympic classes on the waters of Guanabara Bay.

It will be the first in a series of about 45 sports events in Rio 2016 compeition venues that will allow athletes and the organising committee to rehearse for the main events in two years' time. The majority of the events will be held in 2015.

Isabel Swan, Brazil’s only female Olympic medallist in sailing, believes this August's event will be a milestone in the city's preparations for the Games. “It’s an opportunity to show the world that Brazil is well prepared for the Games. It will be like a rehearsal, even though at Games time the number of sailors will be larger,” said Swan, who won bronze with Fernanda Oliveira in the 470 class at the Beijing 2008 Games.

For Brazil’s Jorge Zarif, the Finn class world champion, the test event will give everyone involved a tantalising taste of the Olympic vibe. “I’m used to facing the best international sailors in regattas throughout the world, but competing with them in Rio, on the Olympic course, will be different. There will be a cool feeling that the Games are getting ever nearer,” said Zarif, who was voted Brazil’s best male Olympic athlete of 2013.

 

Guanabara Bay, with Christ the Redeemer looking down, will provide a spectacular seeting for sailing (Photo: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

Walter Böddener, an Olympic and Pan American champion coach, is Rio 2016’s sailing sport manager. He stressed the importance of the August test event, saying: “Sailing is a sport that relies heavily on environmental conditions like water and wind, so it’s essential to have the opportunity to get to know the site and test everything before the Games. For the committee, it’ll be an opportunity to assess important factors, such as operations, the event’s management, as well as the equipment, and to make the necessary adjustments. For athletes, it's a chance to get to know the Olympic course and, therefore, we expect the sport’s leading names to be here.”

Robert Scheidt, two-times Olympic gold medallist in the Laser class, has participated in five test events. “It’s a crucial moment for the organisation,” he said. “It's the time to put into practice the entire operations plan for the regatta, assess what went wrong and fix it so that the Olympic tournament is technically perfect.

“Sailors have the opportunity to get to know the course, venues and analyse the route they will have to take from the Village to the competition site, but what’s crucial for us is that everything should be well adjusted in the water,” added the Brazilian, who noted that a significant amount of infrastructure work was usually done between the test event and the Games. “In Atlanta and Sydney, the test events were held in temporary venues. In Athens, the competition site was expanded with new spaces, such as meeting rooms and a restaurant at Games time.”

The 10 Olympic classes will be contested at the test event in Rio de Janeiro this August (Photo: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

Between May and June, four leading international Finn class sailors spent two weeks in Rio getting to know the Olympic course in training sessions led by French coach François Le Castrec. Sweden's Max Salminen, who won gold in the Star class at London 2012 but now competes in the Finn section, highlighted the technical challenges faced by the competitors.

“The Olympic regattas in Rio will be hard-fought," said Salminen. "Because of the mountains that surround Guanabara Bay, the wind varies a lot in terms of strength and direction, creating lots of challenges for sailors. The competition courses are different and this will make great technical demands of the sailors. The test event presents one more chance to sail in Rio and get to know the competition site. I intend to return many more times up to 2016 and train as many times as possible in Guanabara Bay.”

For France's Jonathan Lobert, who won bronze in the Finn class in London, the water quality in Guanabara Bay is not a major issue. “Sea pollution is a common problem in the world's big cities. I have already competed in events in Barcelona and at the Beijing Games with the same water conditions that we find here. The water quality varies according to the weather and the tide. What affects competition is larger rubbish, like bottles and boxes, that can tie up or strike the boat, and I'm certain that before the Games everything will be done to ensure we don't have this type of problem.”

A second sailing test event, featuring Olympic and Paralympic events, will be held in Guanabara Bay in August 2015. For the International Sailing Federation (ISAF), the two events are crucial steps in preparing for the Rio 2016 Games.

“They will be important for testing everything, especially the competition areas," said Alastair Fox, ISAF's head of competitions. "The two events will happen in August, so the athletes can experience similar weather and wind conditions to those at Games time. It's also a test for the city and a chance for evaluation by ISAF.”