Production began in 2012 under the Nacra Catamarans banner and ended in 2017. As a strict one-design class, it puts every athlete in identical equipment from the same builder, without owner-driven variations in hull form.
Design and Construction
Morrelli & Melvin drew the Nacra 17 as a lightweight catamaran, using carbon-reinforced fiberglass for both hulls and deck. The hull laminates are solid rather than cored.
The boat measures 17.22 feet overall, with a beam of 8.5 feet. Its daggerboards give it a draft of 0.4 feet when raised and 3.4 feet when deployed. At 304 pounds, with a sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 76.44 and a capsize ratio near 5.06, it sits firmly in the high-performance racing camp rather than the recreational cruising market.
Rig, Foils, and Handling
The Nacra 17 has a fractional sloop rig carrying 216 square feet of sail. It was designed to cut through the water with minimum drag and maximum stability. Those goals often work against each other in catamaran design, but the result is assessed as agile yet challenging to sail. It rewards precise crew work and punishes slack technique.
Hydrofoil daggerboards and rudder winglets are the defining equipment. As speed builds, the foils lift the hulls, while winglets at the rudder tips manage flow at the stern. For Tokyo 2020 and beyond, the class was converted to a sailing hydrofoil, confirming a development path toward sustained flight rather than displacement sailing.
Accommodations
There are no accommodations in the conventional sense. The Nacra 17 has a trampoline spanning the hulls but no enclosed living space. Its entire layout revolves around a hiking platform and trapeze geometry for Olympic-level mixed-crew racing, not coastal cruising. Berths, a galley, and a head simply aren’t part of the brief.
Class Changes and Ownership
The most significant ownership event in the class’s short history was its conversion to a sailing hydrofoil for Tokyo 2020 and beyond. Because the Nacra 17 is a strict one-design, a change of this kind is a class-wide specification update rather than an individual owner refit. Equipment remains identical across the fleet by rule.
A 2012–2017 hull may carry post-production foil specifications, depending on class authorization.
The Verdict
The Nacra 17 is a purpose-built Olympic racing boat: a light, agile, foil-capable catamaran that trades cruising comfort for raw racing precision. Its one-design status provides parity on the starting line, while its development into a sailing hydrofoil keeps it at the front of multihull design. It’s demanding to sail, but crews who master it have much to gain.
Pros
- Strict one-design class with identical equipment from the same builder
- Hydrofoil daggerboards and rudder winglets for high-speed flight
- Light weight and a low-drag hull form designed for maximum stability
- Selected for the first mixed Olympic sailing discipline
Cons
- Challenging to sail and demanding of precise crew technique
- No cruising accommodations or enclosed space
- Production ended in 2017, limiting new-build availability
