description Tornado Catamaran Sailing Overview
The Tornado is a double-handed, twin-trapeze catamaran used in competitive sailing, originally designed by Rodney March in 1967. It served as the official high-performance multihull class for the Olympic Games from 1976 until 2008. The vessel is engineered for speed and utilizes a large sail area relative to its hull weight, requiring significant crew agility and coordination. It is raced by experienced sailors competing in international and national regattas.
help Tornado Catamaran Sailing FAQ
How many sailors crew a Tornado catamaran?
The Tornado is sailed by a crew of two. Modern racing rigs use twin trapezes, allowing both sailors to move their weight outside the hull and keep the boat flatter under sail.
How large is a Tornado catamaran?
A Tornado is about 6.1 metres long and just over 3 metres wide. Its broad platform, light construction, and powerful sail plan make it substantially faster and more physically demanding than a typical recreational beach catamaran.
When was the Tornado an Olympic sailing class?
The Tornado competed at the Olympic Games from 1976 through 2008. It was designed by Rodney March in 1967 and selected after winning international trials for an Olympic catamaran.
Why were a second trapeze and spinnaker added to the Tornado?
The class adopted twin-trapeze sailing around 2000 and later raced with a modern asymmetric spinnaker. These changes increased speed and kept the design aligned with the development of high-performance multihull racing.
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