The British Sailing Team has unveiled plans for a state-of-the-art training base at its home in Dorset.
The new Performance and Innovation Centre will bring together sailors, coaches and support staff in one location designed to promote collaboration and innovation.
Built within the grounds of Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA), the centre aims to build on the legacy of London 2012, “pushing performance boundaries and inspiring the next generation of British sailors and grassroots participation”.
It also represents long-term commitment to Weymouth and Portland, considered the “spiritual home” of the British Sailing Team.
The centre will replace the British Sailing Team’s current leased units at Portland Marina, which have been its base for more than a decade.
Funds are now being raised for the project which will be largely funded by private patronage, with contributions from UK Sport and the RYA.
The Performance and Innovation Centre will be built at the site of Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Mark Robinson, RYA performance director said: “For the British Sailing Team to continue its dominance in an increasingly challenging funding, competitive and regulatory environment, it must double down on its strengths which are its intellectual capability and retained knowledge, depth of fleet and available sailing conditions in Weymouth and Portland.
"We now have an opportunity to create a legacy for the British Sailing Team as well as reaffirm the team's commitment to a home in Weymouth.
“This project is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ensure that our Olympic gold medal aspirants are afforded the greatest possible chance of success and will set up our programme to do so for decades to come.”
Great Britain is the most successful Olympic sailing nation, with 64 medals including 31 golds won since the sport made its debut in 1900.
Team GB has also topped the sailing medal table at five of the past six Olympic Games, a feat the team — including the Royal Irish Yacht Club’s Saskia Tidey in the women’s skiff class — will aim to replicate next summer at Paris 2024.
As well as being used to help inspire and support the development of sailors in the British Youth Sailing pathway, the performance centre has been designed with sustainability in mind — not least reducing the need for international travel.
If approved, building will start in spring 2024 with a view to the centre being opened in summer 2025, subject to sufficient funding being secured, to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the RYA.
