This page explains the ranking of Opti Class GER, the German Optimist class association. Other countries use their own rules. The ranking covers one season. Not sailing loses you no points, but the others gain some. A video under two minutes, with everything to read below.
Your child has not sailed a regatta for weeks. Still, they keep dropping down the German ranking list. How can that be?
The ranking list covers one season. It starts on 1 December and ends on 30 November. Only regattas in this time count.
Your place depends on the average of your best nine scores. Your child has an average of 80. That puts them ahead of Tom. Tom has 77.3.
In September, your child sails no regatta. Their points stay the same. They do not go down.
Tom sails a regatta in September and scores 90 points four times. His weakest scores drop out. His average rises to 84.3. Tom overtakes.
This happens with many sailors. Once you have nine scores, every regatta can only stay level or raise your average. Whoever does not sail stands still, and so slides down.
Sailors with fewer than nine scores stand behind everyone with nine. When a sailor gets their ninth score, they can suddenly be ahead of your child.
On 1 December the new season starts. The old results no longer count, for every child alike. Everyone starts again from zero.
Remember: Not sailing loses you no points. But the others gain some.
All rules are published by Opti Class GER.
It gives the period of the annual ranking. The rule “best nine scores” and the order of the ranking list are not in this text. SailRanker checked them against the published ranking lists. Tom, Lea and the other names are made up.
SailRanker works it out with your sail number: place by place, with your real average.