Equity, diversity and inclusion are set to be assessed across all sailing disciplines in a bid to strengthen the future of the sport.

The aim of the participation study is to build a sport that is able to attract and retain talent and ensure there is a robust equity, diversity and inclusion policy.

"By researching the sport, the aim is to explain the underlying mechanisms of how it functions, address how to best develop programmes to support its longevity, and assess the direction and strength of trends in participation," said World Sailing Trust chair Dee Caffari.

"Looking specifically through the lens of equity, diversity and inclusion, the report will aim to give a quantitative overview of sailing today and put forward a series of recommendations to identify and mitigate bias, respect differences, build empathic relationships, manage conflict and bring out the best in others - all of which are key elements in any great sports team."

The study comes two years after the World Sailing Trust published the Strategic Review into Women in Sailing, which highlighted major issues of gender discrimination in the sport.

It confirmed long-held anecdotal evidence that the sport was gender biased at every level.

The results revealed a lack of diversity and inclusion, highlighting the need for action to ensure that sailing is ready for the shift towards greater equity across all cultures.

The participation study is set to identify how the sport reflects the world in 2021 as well as monitor participation levels and trends.

According to the World Sailing Trust, the participation study will be repeated every two years to identify change and support areas where there has been no significant advancement.