Welcome to Performance Sailcraft
Performance Sailcraft has been building world-class dinghies and selling them in over 60 countries for more than seventy years.
Originally called PSA, we started building dinghies in a factory north of Sydney, Australia, in 1955 and became an official Olympic Equipment Supplier in 1999, building the dinghies for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. This included the Laser dinghy used by Sir Ben Ainslie to win his first Olympic gold medal. We are immensely proud of all our competitive sailors, many of whom we continue to sponsor and support worldwide today. Today, we sell our dinghies in over 60 countries, to club sailors, potential Olympians, sailing clubs and resorts, as well as operating the Rascal endurance sailing program.
To buy one of our dinghies, just visit our shops and chandlery by clicking on the regional link below. Click here to check out our unique Magic program with over 30 dinghy bundles, all designed to provide a wide range of choice whilst reducing upfront costs. This program, operated in partnership with Magic, gets you onto the water in a new Performance Sailcraft Dinghy by reducing your upfront cash outlay by around 70%, includes free insurance, and offers contract flexibility.
Our 2026 dinghy range includes
Business Partners and working with us
If you are in the marine business, as a dealer or distributor, sailing or training club or leisure resort and want to explore opportunities with us, including bulk or consolidated purchases please contact us via the following form:
Performance Sailcraft History
We hold and maintain a unique Laser/ILCA heritage
PSA purchased the Ian Bruce and Bruce Kirby-designed laser mould 003 in 1998 in advance of the Sydney Olympic Games, and the mould is recognised as definitive tooling in the 2005 ILCA construction manuals and under a separate agreement with Bruce Kirby.
The Bruce Kirby design, together with the Ian Bruce-designed moulds and tooling, created the coveted one-class design that was the hallmark of the laser and ILCA. When the dinghy changed its name to the ILCA in 2019/20, World Sailing confirmed the design standards in 2019 for the Olympic equipment selection process for the 2024 Paris and 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. We still use the same moulds today, so every Laser/ILCA dinghy Performance Sailcraft manufactures has a direct heritage to many Olympic medal-winning sailors and to the class designer, Bruce Kirby.
International Growth and Innovation Opportunities
In 2021, ILCA Direct, a European business, began buying PSA dinghies and became one of our largest customers. In 2024, PSA became part of a plan to consolidate and build a new global marine business, joining The Performance Marine Group. Investment then flowed, and a new 23,000sq ft manufacturing facility was established in Morisset, Australia. This site also serves as our Research and Development centre for composite materials and manufacturing.
Substantial investment in modern marine construction systems and techniques has already taken place, leading to the development of our all-carbon Rascal, with many other developments being trialled and tested for launch during 2026.
Performance Sailcraft manufactures, sells, and distributes its dinghies to over 60 countries, and we only sell dinghies that we manufacture and guarantee.
Our innovative partnership with Magic, announced in February 2026, is designed to make access to over 30 bundles of Performance Sailcraft dinghies easy, and should make participation in the sport of sailing easier for all, whilst helping our customers' personal cash flow.
Ownership
Performance Sailcraft was owned by the same family from its creation in 1955 until 2024, when all the shares of the business were acquired by 54knots Ltd, part of The Performance Marine Group. Shortly afterwards, ILCA Direct was merged into Performance Marine Europe, another subsidiary of The Performance Marine Group. Performance Marine Americas, based in the USA, serves markets across North and South America.
The Performance Marine Group, the ultimate owner of Performance Sailcraft, is a family company, and you will often find a member of our family team at a sailing event that we are sponsoring or at which some of our thirty-plus sponsored sailors are participating.
