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Part appendices

Section C — Match Racing Rules

Match races shall be sailed under The Racing Rules of Sailing as changed by this appendix. Matches shall be umpired unless the notice of race or sailing instructions state otherwise.

Note: A Standard Notice of Race, Standard Sailing Instructions, and Match Racing Rules for Visually Impaired Sailors are available on the World Sailing website.

C3

RACE SIGNALS AND CHANGES TO RELATED RULES

C3.1: Starting Signals

The signals for starting a match shall be as follows. Times shall be taken from the visual signals; the failure of a sound signal shall be disregarded. If more than one match will be sailed, the starting signal for one match shall be the warning signal for the next match.

Time in minutesVisual signalSound signalMeans
7Flag F displayedOneAttention signal
6Flag F removedNone
5Numeral pennant displayed*OneWarning signal
4Flag P displayedOnePreparatory signal
2Blue or yellow flag or both displayed**One**End of pre-start entry time
1Flag P removedOne long
0Warning signal removedOneStarting signal

*Within a flight, numeral pennant 1 means Match 1, pennant 2 means Match 2, etc., unless the sailing instructions state otherwise.

**These signals shall be made only if one or both boats fail to comply with rule C4.2. The flag(s) shall be displayed until the umpires have signalled a penalty or for one minute, whichever is earlier.

C3.2: Changes to Related Rules

  • (a) Rule 29.1 is changed to:
    • (1) When at a boat’s starting signal any part of her hull is on the course side of the starting line or one of its extensions, the race committee shall promptly display a blue or yellow flag identifying the boat with one sound. The flag shall be displayed until the hull of the boat is completely on the pre-start side of the starting line or one of its extensions or until two minutes after her starting signal, whichever is earlier.
    • (2) When after a boat’s starting signal any part of her hull crosses from the pre-start side to the course side of the starting line across an extension without having started correctly, the race committee shall promptly display a blue or yellow flag identifying the boat. The flag shall be displayed until the hull of the boat is completely on the pre-start side of the starting line or one of its extensions or until two minutes after her starting signal, whichever is earlier.
  • (b) In the race signal AP the last sentence is changed to: ‘The attention signal will be made 1 minute after removal unless at that time the race is postponed again or abandoned.’
  • (c) In the race signal N the last sentence is changed to: ‘The attention signal will be made 1 minute after removal unless at that time the race is abandoned again or postponed.’

C3.3: Finishing Line Signals

The race signal Blue flag or shape shall not be used.

Definitions in Context

Abandon

A race that a race committee or protest committee abandons is void but may be resailed.

Start

A boat starts when, her hull having been entirely on the pre-start side of the starting line at or after her starting signal, and having complied with rule 30.1 if it applies, any part of her hull crosses the starting line from the pre-start side to the course side.

Rule C2

The definition Finish is changed to: ** Finish ** A boat *finishes* when, after her starting signal, any part of her hull crosses the finishing line from the co...

Rule C4

At a boat’s preparatory signal, her hull shall be completely outside the line that is at a 90º angle to the starting line through the starting mark at her assig...

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