Code of Conduct

Applies to all sailors, parents, coaches and staff, at every 24Seven Sailing program, camp, regatta and travelling event.

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Why we have this

Sailing gives young people something a screen never will: judgement, self-reliance, respect for the water, and the company of people who become friends for life. Those things only grow in an environment that is safe, fair and predictable. This Code sets out what we expect, what we do not permit, and what happens when a line is crossed, so that every sailor, parent and coach knows the answer in advance rather than in the middle of a difficult moment.

It applies on the water, in the boat park, at the club, in accommodation, in transport, on every travel leg, and online.

 

A note to parents before travel

For any regatta or camp away from home, and particularly for events abroad, we strongly recommend that a parent or guardian travels with the child.

Our coaches are experienced, our ratios are planned, and we take supervision seriously. But a coach at a regatta is managing boats, weather, race schedules, protests and a squad of sailors at once. No coaching structure replaces a parent’s presence. A child who is unwell, homesick, injured, or simply having a hard day is better served by a parent on site, and a parent who is there sees the racing, understands the decisions, and shares the experience.

Where a parent genuinely cannot travel, we will accept the child into our care under a written consent and travel authorisation, and we will look after that child properly. We ask only that the choice is made with open eyes rather than by default.

What we ask of sailors

 

Representation

Wherever you sail, you represent your family, your club, 24Seven Sailing and, at international events, India. We expect that to show in how you behave, including when no coach is watching.

On the water

• Follow the Racing Rules of Sailing, the Sailing Instructions, and the directions of the race committee, the safety fleet and your coach.

• Sail fairly. No deliberate rule breach, no intimidation of another competitor, no misuse of the protest process.

• Wear a serviceable buoyancy aid at all times afloat, without exception, including while rigging, launching, recovering and riding in a coach boat.

• Never leave the designated sailing area without your coach’s permission.

• Respond immediately to a recall, a safety signal, or an instruction from a coach boat or safety boat.

• Help any sailor in difficulty, from any club or country, before continuing to race.

• Report every capsize needing assistance, every collision, every gear failure and every injury to your coach when you come ashore, however minor it seems.

 

Ashore and in the boat park

• Arrive on time and ready for every briefing, session, launch and debrief.

• Look after your boat, sails, foils and safety gear. Boat preparation is part of the training, not an extra.

• Respect the club, the venue, the volunteers, other competitors’ equipment, and other people’s property.

• Keep the team area, accommodation and transport clean and orderly.

• Take part in the whole programme, including fitness, briefings, debriefs, video and boatwork, unless a coach excuses you.

 

Towards other people

• Treat every sailor, coach, official, volunteer and member of the public with courtesy, whatever the result on the water.

• No bullying, exclusion, hazing, initiation, name-calling, mockery or humiliation, in person or online.

• No discrimination or derogatory remarks on grounds of nationality, religion, caste, race, gender, language, ability or body type.

• No physical aggression, threats or rough play. No unwanted physical contact of any kind.

• Include the youngest and least experienced sailors. Seniority in a squad is a responsibility, not a privilege.

• Win well and lose well. Congratulate the winner. Do not blame your boat, the wind, the race committee or a teammate.

 

Devices and online conduct

• No photography or video in bedrooms, bathrooms or changing areas, at any time, by anyone.

• Do not post another sailor’s photograph, result, injury, mistake or private conversation without their agreement.

• No public criticism of a competitor, official, coach, host club or organising authority on any platform.

• At away events, phones may be collected at night before racing days and returned each morning. You may contact your parents at any time on request.

• If any adult outside the team contacts you, in person or online, in a way that makes you uncomfortable, tell a coach immediately.

 

Away events and overnight stays

• Stay within the accommodation or venue. Do not leave either without a coach.

• Never go anywhere alone. Move in pairs or groups, and tell a coach where you are going and for how long.

• Do not enter another sailor’s room except as the coaches permit, and never after curfew.

• Curfew and lights-out times set by the coaches are binding. Rest is part of preparation.

• Do not sign anything, buy anything on credit, or commit to anything in your own or a parent’s name without a coach’s knowledge.

 

Not permitted, ever

• Alcohol, tobacco, vaping products, and any recreational or illegal substance.

• Any substance on the World Anti-Doping Agency prohibited list. All prescribed medication must be declared on the medical form and checked with the coach.

• Any sexual conduct, or sexualised behaviour, language or imagery.

• Theft, deliberate damage to property, or dishonesty about either.

• Leaving the venue or accommodation alone or without permission.

• Swimming, entering the water, or taking out any craft outside supervised sessions.

• Carrying or using any weapon, knife, laser pointer or pyrotechnic other than class-required safety equipment.

• Anything that breaks the law of the country you are in.

 

What we ask of our coaches and staff

This Code binds the adults as much as the sailors.

• Coaches act in the best interests of the sailors at all times, and place safety and welfare above results.

• Coaches maintain professional boundaries. Contact with sailors is appropriate to coaching and takes place in open, observable settings.

• Coaches do not enter a sailor’s room alone. Room checks are made with the door open and, wherever possible, with a second adult present.

• Coaches do not consume alcohol while responsible for sailors, and remain contactable at all times.

• Coaches photograph or film sailors only for coaching, performance analysis or approved team communication, and respect any parent who has withheld media consent.

• Coaches address indiscipline calmly and privately. Shouting at, belittling, isolating or physically handling a sailor as a punishment is not permitted. No sanction may involve withholding food, water, rest or medical attention.

• Coaches record any incident, injury, illness or disciplinary matter and report it to the Founder and to the sailor’s parents the same day.

• On away events, coaches keep passports, insurance documents and travel authorisations securely, and return them at the end of the trip.

 

Raising a concern

Any sailor who feels unsafe, unwell, unfairly treated, homesick, or uncomfortable about anything at all should tell a coach straight away. No sailor is ever penalised, dropped or judged for speaking up.

If a sailor would rather not speak to the coach present, or the concern is about a coach, the sailor or the parent can contact the Founder directly at any hour.

Ms. Sonu Nagi +91 9810047579

Every concern is taken seriously, recorded, and shared with the parents. Anything involving the safety or welfare of a child is escalated immediately to the parents and, where appropriate, to the organising authority, the Yachting Association of India, and the relevant authorities.

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If the Code is broken

Our response is proportionate, explained to the sailor, and communicated to the parents the same day.

Level 1 — Lateness, untidy boat or room, missed fitness, minor discourtesy. Verbal correction by the coach, recorded, and mentioned to the parents.

Level 2 — Repeated Level 1 conduct, or breach of curfew, phone or team routines. Formal warning, loss of free time, and a direct conversation with the parents.

Level 3 — Disrespect to an official, competitor or volunteer; leaving the venue without permission; unsafe conduct afloat; damage to property. Withdrawal from one or more races or sessions, a written record, and a call between the coach, the Founder and the parents.

Level 4 — Any prohibited item or substance; bullying, discrimination or harassment; theft; dishonesty in a safety matter; conduct endangering another person; any breach of law. Immediate removal from the programme. At an away event, the sailor is supervised until departure and returned home at the family’s cost, including any revised travel for an escorting coach. Fees and committed costs are not refunded.

A sailor removed from a programme is supervised at all times until handed over to a parent, guardian, or a person the parent nominates in writing.

Where a matter also falls under the Racing Rules of Sailing or an event’s own jury process, that jurisdiction is separate from and additional to this Code.

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What we ask of parents

• Read this Code with your child and make sure they understand it.

• Where your child travels without you, produce the travel authorisation and notarised consent documentation required by prevailing law, by the airline, and by the immigration authorities of the destination. This is the parent’s responsibility to obtain and to keep valid for the whole period of travel. We will advise on what is required; we do not procure it on your behalf.

• Disclose in full, on the medical form, every allergy, condition, medication and dietary requirement relevant to your child’s safety.

• For away events, stay contactable throughout, in both local and destination time zones, and nominate a second contact who is also reachable.

• Support the coaches’ decisions on safety, discipline and racing. Raise any disagreement with the Founder directly, not with the sailors, other parents or the organising authority.

• Do not coach, direct or contact your child during scheduled sessions, briefings or racing.

• Accept responsibility for the cost of an early return home arising from injury, illness or a Level 4 breach.

 

Photography and media

 

We photograph and film sailors during sessions and events, for coaching analysis and for our website and social media. Parents may withhold consent for public use at any time, in writing, without any effect on their child’s participation. We never publish images identifying a sailor’s accommodation, room or travel details.

 

Acceptance

 

Enrolment in any 24Seven Sailing programme, camp or event constitutes acceptance of this Code by the sailor and by the parent or guardian. For travelling events, a signed acknowledgement is required in addition, along with the event’s consent, medical and insurance documentation.

This Code is reviewed periodically. The version published on this page is the version in force.