RRS changes in 2025-28 edition

This is a brief digest of the Study Version of the Racing Rules of Sailing 2025-2028, which is obtainable from World Sailing.

There are many changes of detail, but as far as we are concerned, there is only one material difference: you break rule 14 if you cause another boat to suffer a collision, even if you don't make contact yourself.

RRS14 - avoiding contact - is extended to include causing contact between boats, or between a boat and an object that should be avoided.

Other points of possible interest:

Markroom definition and RRS18 - Markroom - Heavily edited, but no change of intention.

Part 5 - protests, redress, hearings, etc - completely rewritten, but our approach has always been less formal.

Definition of finish changed - technical - legitimises our current practice on "hook finishes", which used to be forbidden.

Definition of Proper Course changed - now relates to completing a boat's current leg rather than finishing the course. Changed again in latest corrections - now says "sail the course as quickly as possible"