In the early Olympics, sailing was predominantly in bigger boats, with as many as 10-12 sailors in each boat. Starting from 1924 and increasingly from the 1950s onwards, the trend moved towards smaller and smaller one-design boats with fewer crew members. In the last 20 years, equipment trials have resulted in several new boats reflecting the latest developments in the sport.
During the 2004 Athens Games, only one event had a three-person crew, the Yngling. Five events were raced by lone sailors. The current line-up of boats is a mixture between classes with a long and distinguished history, like the Star and the Finn, and those reflecting the design and technology advances in the sport, such as the 49er. This year also marks the final showing of the high-performance Tornado catamaran.
While women have always been allowed to compete in Olympic sailing with men, in 1988 separate sailing events were introduced exclusively for women. In 2004, there were men's, women's and open events.
Sailing made history in Sydney, as it became the first Olympic sport to make a name change. The sport had always been called "yachting." Sydney also marked a high point in the Olympic sport as huge crowds turned out in the city's spectacular venue -- Sydney Harbor -- to watch the races.
