The usage of sailing boats outside of trading and war at sea for sports and cruising began in the last century in Turkey. The first sailing boats were different models of the traditional rowing boat, called SANDAL. The enjoyment of sailing was grown with the imported yachts by the foreign people living in Turkey, some politicians and businessmen followed this way, they imported some yachts or they let them be built by the boatbuilders.

At the beginning of the 1930's the sport of sailing developed with the new boats like the 12m² SCHARPIEs and the 12 feet DINGHIES for the young ones, who wanted racing besides the big yachts.

Fenerbahçe was at that time a green peninsula with a ruin from the Byzantine time, and a rest of an ancient breakwater. Some yachts used that simple harbor and were aland in winter.

In the summer of 1936, Mustafa Kemal ATATÜRK, the founder of our republic, visited this summer residence area. With his steady interest for youth, sport and sea, he ordered to the accompanying people :

"Let the breakwater repair and develop this Fenerbahçe peninsula
to a center of sea sports for the youth."

Sadly, ATATÜRK was deadly ill and his physical being left us alone. Just there
after the Second World War broke out and came just to our borders.

We were not involved into the war, but we used all our sources for keeping the
country far away from any enemy. After the war, we made our first steps in the
democracy.

But the order was not forgotten through this years, the breakwater was repaired,
and the lovers of sailing waited for the time.

On the second day of February 1952, 50 people founded Istanbul Sailing Club.
There were sailors between them, who already sailed 1936 in Berlin, there
were naval architects, yacht owners, the governor of Istanbul City, several
businessmen, leaders of the sports organization of the state, even a princess.

Founded half a century ago,the Istanbul Sailing Club is the oldest and biggest sailing club of Turkey with around 3000 members. The club is appointed as "a society of public interests" by the Cabinet of Ministers, and only two sport clubs have this status in Turkey.