SHANGHAI, April 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Fifteen J80 sailboats, eight ILCA6 sailboats and three catamarans set sail on the Huangpu River in east China's Shanghai on the afternoon of March 26, marking the official opening of the 2024 Shanghai Sailing Open.

35 ILCA6 sailboats and 25 J80 sailboats participated in the 2024 Shanghai Sailing Open. A total of 300 contestants took part in the competition,  including six-time World Champion Marcin Rudawski from Poland, ILCA4 gold medalist Weka Bharubnandh from Thailand at the Hangzhou Asian Games, and European Cup bronze medalist Kenan Tan, among many top international sailing athletes.

The event has attracted many famous athletes of other sports, including Olympic champions Wu Minxia, Zhong Tianshi, Zou Shiming, Le Jingyi, Xu Lijia and Huo Liang, as well as Shanghai International Port (Group) Co., Ltd. (SIPG) football club player Wang Shenchao and Shanghai Shenhua Football Club player Cephas Malele, according to Shanghai Administration of Sports. They boarded the J80 sailboats as captains and cruised the river.

World Championship champions and sailing enthusiasts came from all over the world to compete in Shanghai, while local residents and visitors enjoyed a leisurely time at the sailing village at North Bund which was set up to promote the new race and sailing culture.

With thrilling competitions on the river and a beautiful landscape along the river, the Shanghai Sailing Open has put on a lively scene to the metropolis.