Sport: Sailing

Located in Dorset on the south coast of England, Weymouth and Portland provides some of the best natural sailing waters in the UK, with facilities on land to match.

The design and build

Weymouth and Portland already had world-class sailing facilities, but some enhancements were needed to ensure the venue was suitable for the Olympic Sailing completion.

The improvements to the existing facilities at Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA) include a new permanent 250m slipway used for launching and landing boats and 70 new moorings.

A new commercial 560-berth marina has also been built nearby and 250 of these berths will be used during the Games.

The project was completed within budget and ahead of schedule, providing world-class facilities for elite athletes and the local community, more than three years before the Games. It was the first sporting venue to be completed.

The ticketed spectator area at Weymouth and Portland is called The Nothe.

After the Games

The National Sailing Academy will benefit from the improved facilities that the Games will leave behind, providing a state-of-the-art facility for elite training, competition and community use.

The venue has already started a community programme and has hosted the Olympic Windsurfing discipline, RS:X class World Championship in 2009, and the IFDS (Paralympic Sailing) World Championship in 2011.