3 April, 2018: The Women’s International Match Racing Series today announced the 2018 series schedule with events in Finland, Sweden, Russia and the US Virgin Islands. This year marks the sixth consecutive season of the WIM Series, the world’s first and only women’s professional sailing series founded in 2012.
Up to 30 of the top women’s match racing teams will battle for the coveted series trophy starting in Helsinki (Finland) 25-29 June followed by back-to-back events in Lysekil (Sweden) 6-11 August, and Ekaterinburg (Russia) 13-18 August. The Series finale will be staged in the turquoise waters of St.Thomas in the US Virgin Islands 29 November – 2 December. A penultimate fifth event is expected to be added to the schedule in September and the Series is keen to also add a US event.
British skipper Lucy Macgregor (GBR) and her team won both WIM Series events that they entered last year, one being the World Championship in Helsinki.
Anna Östling and her Team Anna have been ranked as the number one female match racing team in the world since August 2016, and they are looking forward to entering the new season.
The WIM Series is looking at adding events to the 2018 calendar. And, as the only international professional sailing series for women, the Series aims to inspire both female and male sailors all over the world.
In addition to competing at different venues on the WIM Series, teams will also be tested with sailing different boats at each event, one of the unique elements of the match racing series. The yachts, usually 20-30ft in length and designed for 5 crew, are supplied by each event. The class of boats will range from the J80’s in Helsinki, to the Far East 28’s in Sweden, Ricochet 747’s in Russia, and the classic IC24’s in St Thomas.