Delta Lloyd 470 World Championships

Lisa Westerhof and Lobke Berkhout (Photo by Sander van der Borch)

Sailing fans will be treated to another a high performance sporting event from 9 to 18 July with the Delta Lloyd 470 World Championships. The sailing event will be held on the North Sea by The Hague with 360 sailors representing more than 40 nations and six continents.

The races start on 12 July and conclude on 18 July with the final medal races taking place as close as possible to the Scheveningen coast, which is visited daily by thousands of people. Organisers are expecting great sailing conditions, fantastic weather, a wonderful natural arena for spectators to watch the racing and the world's best sailors.

World’s top names
The 470 fleet represents a huge depth of talent in the pool of sailors competing for medals. Sime Fantela and Igor Marenic from Croatia will defend their men's 470 World title, while the Dutch women Lisa Westerhof and Lobke Berkhout (winner of the Beijing 2008 Two Person Dinghy silver medal) will defend their women's titles.

470 sailing class
The 470 is a popular class of dinghy with both individuals and sailing schools, offering a good introduction to high-performance boats without being excessively difficult to handle. It is a double-handed monohull planing dinghy with a centreboard, Bermuda rig, and centre sheeting. The 470 is equipped with spinnaker and trapeze, making teamwork necessary to sail it well.

The 470 has been an Olympic class since the 1976 games and will be used for the Men's Two Person Dinghy event and the Women's Two Person Dinghy event at the 2012 Olympics in London.

The 470 is one of the most widely spread two person dinghies in the world, sailed in over 60 nations and with over 40,000 boats built. Next year's 470 World Championships will be held in Perth, Australia, as part of the ISAF Sailing World Championships. This sailing event will be an interesting performance evaluator for the 2012 Olympics in London.

More information
The Delta Lloyd 470 Class World Championships 2010 are organised by the Royal Netherlands Yachting Union, The Royal Yacht Club Hollandia and Yacht Club Scheveningen.

For up-to-date information about the sailing event, visit the website of the Delta Lloyd 470 World Championships (www.470worlds2010.com).

The Hague – Sailing City by the Sea
The Hague considers sailing of paramount importance. At the end of 2008, the Royal Netherlands Yachting Union and the city of The Hague signed a cooperation agreement to improve sailing at all levels. The Hague should become the centre for Dutch coastal yachting and for the Delta Lloyd Olympic Sailing Team of the Netherlands.

In May 2009 the International Top Sailing Centre The Hague opened its doors. This centre was initiated by the Dutch federation and Yacht Club Scheveningen to make The Hague a leading yachting location.

A leading sailing location requires top sailing events and activities. In preparation for the Olympic and Paralympic Games of 2012 in London, the North Sea is considered important training waters.

DenHaag.com