Santander edged out rival bids from Argentina, Canada, China, Denmark, Korea, the Netherlands and Poland, and the event, which will attract around 1,400 competitors from 95 countries, will run from September 1-15.

“We are very happy because it was a very difficult contest,” Gerardo Pombo, the president of the Spanish Sailing Federation (RFEV), told ABC. “All of the candidates were strong. The ISAF especially liked the Polish and Danish bids, with both countries having staged numerous championships, but the Spanish bid was ultimately rated as the best one.”

Pombo added: “We believe we have done a great job in explaining the project and the World Championships will be a success thanks to the contributions of all stakeholders.”