With the Christmas break there is rarely much movement in the rankings, so it’s a great time to look as to why the SSL Nations Ranking is so important.
Firstly, let’s look at how the the SSL Nations Ranking is calculated. The formula is the addition of the top five ranked Skippers and top two ranked Crew from each Nation in the SSL Global Ranking, to give a points total. The lower the total, the higher your Nation is ranked.
Having 113,000 athletes’ event statistics, gives the SSL the ability to rank nations according to their top sailors and, once a month, the SSL Nations Ranking is released.
When it comes to the SSL Gold Cup, scheduled from 10th November to 3rd December 2023, the SSL Nations Ranking are vital as they determine which teams will be automatically through to the Final Series. Teams ranked from 23rd to 17th and the host nation start the competition at the 1/16 Finals stage, teams ranked from 16th to 9th enter the racing at the 1/8 Finals stage, and teams ranked from 8th to 1st commence their involvement at the 1/4 Finals stage. Teams ranked 25th and below must go through the Qualifying Series to reach the Finals Series.
This literally means that every point counts. While the sailors are individuals is the SSL Rankings, when it comes to the SSL Nations Ranking, they come together as a team to determine their country’s position in the chart, just as they do on the water, racing the SSL47 yachts in the SSL Gold Cup. For the 2023 SSL Gold Cup qualification and seeding was decided in 2022.
Mark has been managing sailing websites since 1996, always being at the forefront of technology, and now manages the combined Sail-World.com and YachtsandYachting.com network. He has covered events such as the International Moth World Championship and Cowes Week, focusing on the sailors' thoughts and words. Mark has been European Champion in the Farr 30 & J/24 class and has won numerous UK titles, and competes regularly in local and national events in dinghies and sportsboats.