The Techno 293 and Techno + World Championships 2024 will be taking place in less than a month’s time on Lake Balaton. The year’s major rendezvous for the Techno 293 Class is already looking like a great vintage with 343 riders from 19 different countries already registered to race.
That’s an excellent number, one that will certainly increase over the coming weeks, already beating the numbers attending the 2023 World Championships, which itself was an increase on the previous year. This confirms the very good state of health of the Techno class, which has also added 3 more countries to the nation list.
It’s the home nation who have entered the biggest number of riders (60) at Balaton. Hungarian clubs, who have had an increasing presence on the Techno scene, have responded in a big way to the first ever appearance of the World Championships in their country.
The other big teams with more than 40 riders registered are Italy and Greece, both long-standing faithful supporters of the Techno class and constantly present on the podiums. The next group of countries, with 20 or more riders, features Turkey, Spain, Estonia, Czech Republic and Poland. Then there are the teams bringing 10 riders including Great Britain, Japan, Belgium and France, a welcome return by France to overseas international competition. The teams bringing fewer than 10 riders is made up of Germany, Slovakia, Tunisia, Israel and the United States. And let’s give a mention to Peru, back at the World Championships after a few years absence.
As regards the categories, the Under 17s is as usual the biggest fleet, with over 100 riders starting. That’s a stable number and very pleasing considering the strong competition from foilboarding in this age group.
Just behind them the Under 15s has nearly 100 entries. This, too, is a great score, close to the number attending the 2023 World Championships in Quiberon, France.
In the oldest age group (Under 19s and Open) the numbers are likewise very stable, with a solid 70 riders registered. These groups are for riders who want to carry on in Techno competition after finishing their school education.
But the nicest surprise of all is in the youngest group, the Under 13s. The 74 entries is a whopping 40% increase on the 2023 number. This is an age group that is clearly here to stay !
The male/female ratio shows a small but noticeable increase in the number of female riders. Girls now make up 42% of the total entry, which is a very impressive stat for the sailing world. Equality is slowly but surely coming !
Rendezvous in 3 weeks time for a last look at the teams, and a focus on this massive lake right in the heart of mainland Europe.
While you’re waiting for the action to start on 20st July, you’ll find all the information you need on the event website : https://worlds2024.techno293.org/
