The Racing Rules of Sailing, explained.

This is a plain-language orientation, paraphrased from US Sailing, Sail Canada and other rules summaries rather than from World Sailing's full official text. When a rule matters to a result, read the current rulebook itself.

The edition in force

World Sailing publishes the Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS) every four years; Wikipedia notes that a new edition follows each Olympic Games. The 2025-2028 edition took effect on 1 January 2025 and runs to 31 December 2028. World Sailing has since issued Changes and Corrections; US Sailing's version 2, dated 30 January 2026, lists four typographical fixes.

National authorities add their own prescriptions. US Sailing's US Prescriptions apply only in the United States.

How the rulebook is organized

Lettered appendices follow, using single letters (I, K, L, O and Q are skipped). Appendices with two or three letters, such as TS (Traffic Separation Scheme) and RV (Reduced Visibility), are published online.

Basic Principles and the fundamental rules

The book opens with Basic Principles. Under Sportsmanship, a boat that breaks a rule is expected to take a penalty promptly or retire. Under Environment, everyone is encouraged to keep the sport's environmental impact low. The 2025 definition of "rule" makes clear that these principles are not themselves rules.

• Rule 1, Safety: boats and competitors must help anyone in danger where they can. (The research behind this page did not check the exact current wording against the official text.)
• Rule 2, Fair Sailing: boats must compete with sportsmanship and fair play. Breaking it brings a disqualification that cannot be dropped from a series score.
• Rule 3, Decision to Race: only the boat itself decides whether to start or keep racing.

Key definitions

Tack

A boat's tack (port or starboard) is set by its windward side.

Windward and leeward

Leeward is the side away from the wind. Of two overlapped boats on the same tack, the one on the other's leeward side is the leeward boat.

Clear ahead, clear astern, overlap

Measured from a line abeam of the other boat's aftmost point of hull and equipment. Boats overlap when neither is clear astern.

Keep clear

The right-of-way boat can sail its course without having to avoid the other, and when overlapped can also change course either way without immediate contact.

Zone

The area within three hull lengths of a mark, measured for the boat nearer to it. A boat is in the zone when any part of its hull is inside.

The core right-of-way rules

US Sailing's rule 10 guidance adds that a port-tack boat's hail of "hold your course" does not bind the starboard boat, and that the starboard boat does not have to make contact to prove a foul.

The right-of-way boat has limits too. Under rule 15, a boat that gains right of way must at first give the other room to keep clear, unless it gained right of way through the other boat's own actions. Under rule 16, a right-of-way boat that changes course must give the other boat room to keep clear. Rule 14 covers avoiding contact.

Mark-room, in outline

Rule 18 applies between boats that must leave a mark on the same side when at least one of them is in the zone. It does not apply between boats on opposite tacks on a beat, or between a boat approaching a mark and one leaving it. Under the 2025 wording, if boats are overlapped when the first one reaches the zone, the outside boat gives mark-room; if not, the boat that reached the zone first is owed mark-room, and that obligation continues even if the overlap later changes. Mark-room has detailed exceptions, so read rule 18 in full.

Penalties

• A boat that may have broken a Part 2 rule can take a Two-Turns Penalty. One that may have touched a mark (rule 31) can take a One-Turn Penalty.
• Each turn includes one tack and one gybe, made promptly in the same direction after getting well clear; a full 360 degrees is not required.
• Taking a penalty is not an admission of fault, and one penalty covers an incident even if several rules were broken.
• A boat that caused injury or serious damage, or gained a significant advantage despite its penalty, must retire.
• The notice of race or sailing instructions may replace turns with a Scoring Penalty or another penalty.

What changed in 2025

• Rule 18.2 was restructured as described above, and a new rule 18.3 (Tacking in the Zone) says a boat that tacks inside the zone is not owed mark-room under 18.2 by a starboard-tack boat fetching the mark.
• Rule 14 now also covers causing contact between two other boats, or between a boat and an object that should be avoided.
• Rule 20.1 gives a specific hail, "Room to tack," for asking for room at an obstruction.
• Rule 40 lets class rules put the basic life jacket rule into effect, rule 50.1 sets crew harness requirements, and new rule 56.3 forbids switching off or degrading required AIS or tracking devices.
• The Part 5 rules on protests, redress and hearings were rearranged and renumbered without significant change in substance, and a boat no longer has to have started in order to finish.

The layers on top

Each event adds its own documents. The Notice of Race sets details such as which rating certificate a boat needs; US Sailing tells PHRF sailors to check it for the local fleet certificate required. Offshore races can also apply World Sailing's Offshore Special Regulations, a separate safety document (see offshore races). World Sailing and US Sailing train the judges and umpires who apply all of this.

Protests and redress can decide major races. In the 2025 Sydney Hobart, Min River was declared overall winner after a protest gave a time penalty to the boat initially ahead, and in The Ocean Race 2022-23 an International Jury's redress award decided the overall win.

Racing rules and the rules of the road

This page covers the rules for racing only. For the navigation rules that apply to all boats on the water, see rules of the road, and check the rules that apply where you sail with your local authority.