Sailing made its first appearance at the Olympic Games in 1900 (it was supposed to be introduced at the 1896 Olympics but was called off due to bad weather). It took place on the River Seine, 32km away from the Paris centre where the rest of the sports were held.

There were no restrictions on the number of boats each country could enter, so France won three medals in the œ tonne class and Great Britain won gold in the œ-1 tonne class and in the ‘open class’.

It wasn’t until 1907 that the world governing body for sailing was set up. It was called the International Yacht Racing Union and their primary focus was to avoid collisions during racing. They went on to make a uniform set of rules for all regattas. In 1996, the name changed to International Sailing Federation (ISAF).

Yachting was very much seen as a luxury sport for the wealthy for first half of the 20th century. However, by the mid 20th century, new materials such as plywood meant dinghies could be made lighter and stronger than ever before. Construction of boats became easier and cheaper, which allowed a whole new range of people to try the sport.

By the 1960s, boat builders were launching new designs nearly every month. The rise of fibreglass meant boats could be lighter and faster than ever before.

In 1964, Bill Northam, a 59 year-old grandfather of five from Australia, won gold in the 5.5 metre class, making him Australia’s oldest Olympic gold medallist. After totting up enough points, he skipped the final race and celebrated by drinking a lot of vodka – before climbing on top of the podium.

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Women-only events were introduced in the Olympics for the first time in 1988. Allison Jolley and L. Jewell from the USA won the first Olympic gold in sailing for women in a 470 dinghy.

For the first time in history, the Olympic harbour was part of the Olympic village in 1992 Games in Barcelona, Spain. Two extra women’s races were also added this year – included the women’s windsurfing event.

Interestingly, sailing is one of only two Olympic sports where men and women compete against each other – the other is equestrian.

By 1996, there were 56 sailors from 56 countries competing in the Laser class at the Olympics, an unprecedented number of competitors.

The Sydney Olympics in 2000 presented a perfect opportunity to show off the sport inside the world’s biggest natural harbour, right at the heart of the city centre. The 49er class was introduced for the first time here and nation’s flags were also printed on the sails for the first time.

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Ben Ainslie from Great Britain and Brazilian pair Robert Scheidt and Torben Grael have the most Olympic sailing medals of all time.

Today there are six classes at the Olympics, not including windsurfing – 470, 49er, Finn, Laser, Laser Radial and Nacra 17. At Rio 2016, there will be 270 sailors from 62 countries.

After a long and varied history, it’s great to see that the sport still continues strong in the Olympic Games and beyond.

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