EYESAILOR
Super Anarchist
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The IOC has finally woken up and realized that World Sailing has proposed an Olympic Class/Discipline without an existing world championship , exclusive and expensive to participate in for those outside of the wealthiest nations and problematic from TV Coverage.
Its a shame because media coverage probably could have been amazing.
This is not the thread to debate the pros and cons of the offshore double handed discipline.
Instead let this thread look at the alternatives . If the offshore event is thrown out.....what can it be replaced with?
Sailing gets 10 classes.
The 10 classes are currently dispersed among 4 major categories of sailing
1. Dinghies/skiffs -5
2. Multihulls - 1
3. Board- 3
4. Keelboat -1
I think the dinghy /skiffs are in good shape with men and women single hander, men and women double hander and a mixed double hander. Dinghies do not need an additional class. It is the heart of competitive sailing, accessible to most nations and relates to mainstream of the sport so it is right that dinghies/skiffs should account for 50% of the disciplines.
Mixed multihull is doing well attracting good teams. There should always be a multihull discipline.
Boards are a growth area in sailing. I disagree with the allotment of 2 to windsurfers and only 1 to kitesailing, I would make it the other way around. The discipline is difficult to set up as mixed so I would prefer to see a Mens and womens kite boarding. The sport could easly become the most exciting to watch in all the summer olympics and re-establish sailing's importance in the Olympics. It deserves at least 3 slots and in the future should include freestyle. However I cannot see reducing the other categories so unless IOC is so wowed by kite boarding that it gives an additional slot, its 3.
Keelboats. There is a real risk that if the offshore discipline is dropped, the keelboat slot gets allocated to either dinghies or boards. I think this would be a grave error. Keelboat racing is one of the largest and most important categories of the sport in the real world. Sailing olympics without keelboats would be like distance running without the marathon. inshore short course keelboat racing overstayed its welcome with the Star......a magnificent boat but dated (in the olympics since 1932). I would like to see WS have a back up plan in case the offshore event is terminated and offer an alternate modern keelboat for inshore racing. A 2 or 3 person mized gender sportboat like the RS21, VX One, Viper, or something similar. A modern equivalent of the Tempest.
Thoughts?
Another dinghy?
Another board?
Another multihull?
Or preserve one discipline in keelboat racing
Its a shame because media coverage probably could have been amazing.
This is not the thread to debate the pros and cons of the offshore double handed discipline.
Instead let this thread look at the alternatives . If the offshore event is thrown out.....what can it be replaced with?
Sailing gets 10 classes.
The 10 classes are currently dispersed among 4 major categories of sailing
1. Dinghies/skiffs -5
2. Multihulls - 1
3. Board- 3
4. Keelboat -1
I think the dinghy /skiffs are in good shape with men and women single hander, men and women double hander and a mixed double hander. Dinghies do not need an additional class. It is the heart of competitive sailing, accessible to most nations and relates to mainstream of the sport so it is right that dinghies/skiffs should account for 50% of the disciplines.
Mixed multihull is doing well attracting good teams. There should always be a multihull discipline.
Boards are a growth area in sailing. I disagree with the allotment of 2 to windsurfers and only 1 to kitesailing, I would make it the other way around. The discipline is difficult to set up as mixed so I would prefer to see a Mens and womens kite boarding. The sport could easly become the most exciting to watch in all the summer olympics and re-establish sailing's importance in the Olympics. It deserves at least 3 slots and in the future should include freestyle. However I cannot see reducing the other categories so unless IOC is so wowed by kite boarding that it gives an additional slot, its 3.
Keelboats. There is a real risk that if the offshore discipline is dropped, the keelboat slot gets allocated to either dinghies or boards. I think this would be a grave error. Keelboat racing is one of the largest and most important categories of the sport in the real world. Sailing olympics without keelboats would be like distance running without the marathon. inshore short course keelboat racing overstayed its welcome with the Star......a magnificent boat but dated (in the olympics since 1932). I would like to see WS have a back up plan in case the offshore event is terminated and offer an alternate modern keelboat for inshore racing. A 2 or 3 person mized gender sportboat like the RS21, VX One, Viper, or something similar. A modern equivalent of the Tempest.
Thoughts?
Another dinghy?
Another board?
Another multihull?
Or preserve one discipline in keelboat racing