Ford McCann -Through The Lens Of An ILCA Sailor
As the only US Sailing athlete selected and not going to the 2024 Olympics, Ford McCann was let down by the "program"
“When I look back on our (the US ILCA 7 team) shortcomings, it started well before the Last Chance Regatta. I take full responsibility and am proud of the program and campaign I created. My Olympic journey was valuable and productive; the results don't diminish my pride. Doing your best with available resources is all an athlete can strive for.”
The Men's Singlehanded Dinghy Class Failed To Qualify For The Olympics.
Securing an Olympic spot in sailing involves winning national trials and ensuring country qualification through specific international regattas. The four qualifying events for the US were the 2023 and 2024 World Championships, the 2023 Pan American Games, and the Last Chance Regatta.
Olympic Development Program (ODP) - The Process
Interviewing Ford McCann, it is quickly apparent that he is highly intelligent, analytical, and deeply committed to the process. Ford and his twin brother, Marshall, entered the US Sailing Olympic Development Program (ODP) in 2016 when the under-21 program was still being developed.
It was a time of high hopes, building on the momentum of US Sailing's recent success at the Youth World Championships and Caleb Paine's bronze medal in the Rio Olympics. Hiring legendary Australian two-time Olympic gold medalist Malcolm Page as the new High-Performance Director of the Olympic Program further fueled these aspirations.
The ODP sailors trained domestically in Florida and San Francisco and were discouraged from traveling to international events.
The removal of Malcolm Page in 2018 significantly impacted the ODP sailors. This upheaval affected their development and preparation during a crucial period.
The 2024 Olympic Quad
Under new leadership, the US Olympic program prioritized domestic training and expanded responsibilities to include both the Olympic Development Program (ODP) and the Olympic Team. However, this shift disadvantaged both senior and ODP sailors, with a more significant impact on McCann and the ILCA 7 sailors.
McCann realized the extent of their disadvantage, along with other ILCA 7 sailors, months before the domestic trials during their competition at the Euro Cup in Vilamoura, Portugal. They had assumed their domestic training prepared them to meet global standards, but it quickly became clear that this was not the case.
“In the months leading up to the trials, we were looking at our trial boats, testing the Miami conditions, but then we had to switch gears almost three months away from the trials to focus on the 2024 worlds (an Olympic country qualifier). We went to Vilamoura, Portugal, to prepare for the worlds to race in a Euro Cup-style event. It was very gritty, hardcore, and competitive. We all had such high sights because of our training in Miami. We were feeling great, right? But when we arrived at Vilamoura, Daniel Escudero and I were the only two to make the gold fleet. After having been crushing it in Miami training and thinking we were getting so far ahead, the realization hit that we were off the pace.”
As a silver medalist in 1984 and a favorite to win the gold medal at the 1980 Olympics (boycotted), my success was heavily based on spending 95% of my time training and competing in Europe. I was fortunate to have connected with the German Finn team, utilizing their coach, logistics, and trainer. This approach is being utilized by several current US Olympic sailing teams. For example, Steph Roble and Maggie Shea train with the British women's FX Olympic team.
A Consortium Is Formed
Realizing that winning the trials would be meaningless if the US sailors could not qualify the country, McCann, his twin Marshall, and Leo Boucher agreed it was more important to ensure the country's qualification rather than focus on who won the trials, as long as it was one of them.
Failing to secure one of the seven-nation spots at the 2024 World Championships meant they would need to secure one of the four spots at the Last Chance Regatta.
The Last Chance Regatta - Three-Boat Team Racing Regatta
The Last Chance Regatta format was not apparent to the casual observer and was effectively a team match-race event for countries with more than one competitor (each nation was allowed up to three competitors). This became evident in McCann's first race when two sailors from another country continuously match-raced him throughout the first day.
“Everyone was aware that I was one of the top five nations and also the 'rabbit,' you could say. From day one, I was targeted, and two sailors who were not the frontrunners for their team were slamming me on every tack and following me closely, and it was not clean racing at all. Despite this, we continued to fight, maintaining a strong team attitude between Marshall, Leo, and me.”
US sailors chose to sail their own race. McCann's 8th-place finish left the US out of the Olympics in the ILCA 7 event for the first time in US Sailing’s history.
Having to "peak" twice in two months was not ideal and likely prevented McCann and the US sailors from performing at their best.
Reflections And Even Better If…
“The fact that we spent an entire summer not racing in Europe and a whole fall sailing around Miami while everyone else was in places like Vilamoura, pushing each other and raising the bar, significantly impacted our progress. In the last couple of years, we were only given support if we adhered to the American domestic philosophy, and the moment we deviated from it, it became impossible to access the necessary resources.”
“We can learn from others and shouldn't be too proud to do so. Embracing domestic trials as a way forward is fine, but we must also be aware of its weaknesses and balance the system accordingly.”
“The 1980s golden-era thinking about training has fallen behind the rest of the world. We (Americans) still believe we are leaders because of our past. This mindset leads us to make decisions as if we are bringing back American talent; in reality, we must acknowledge that we are a redeveloping country in this sport.”
“We operate on a political system, often requiring sailors to pander to gain support from the US Sailing Program. For example, I structured much of my training in Miami to show my commitment to sailing in the trials. While theoretically good, this approach has flaws and underscores the need for better leadership and a more balanced system.”
Other Olympic team members widely criticized the emphasis on domestic training and the lack of transparency and well-established processes and procedures.
The Future
“I plan to find a job or some way to support myself here in Miami while continuing to compete in the ILCA and other sailing classes. Leo, Marshall, and I plan to continue training together. We are all highly motivated and feel we have the potential to reach world competitiveness. The next Olympics being held in the States adds an extra layer of motivation for us.”
Editor’s Notes:
Ford, his twin Marshall, Leo Boucher, and the other ILCA 7 sailors of that generation were unwitting participants and suffered from the disruptions of the US Sailing Team during the 2020 Quad and the significant disruption in 2023. This group was more harshly impacted because they didn't have the benefit of mentoring from prior senior ILCA sailors or a support system to guide them. Instead, they relied solely on the direction and processes of the “Program.”
I have great respect for any athlete who has the talent and drive to go after an Olympic medal. This fact that this group is willing to devout 4 more years to their quest is even more impressive. Hopefully valuable lessons were learned but I see some early flaws in their new plan of attack.
Why Miami? It would seem LA or Long Beach would a far smarter residency for 2028. Is the same mistake not being made.
Yes team racing is a bitch, illegal and unfair but putting a focus here on a failing will not help you in the future. The fact that you had to endure team racing means you probably did not have first row starts and catching the 1st shift. Focus on these fundamentals which takes away the excuses.
The Development leaders did a disservice to the sailors. They were trying to develop the size of the fleets not produce winning individual efforts with their stay home strategy. Spending a lunch or two with the 49er, FX and 470 sailors in the 2nd or 3rd campaign would have rapidly convinced you the stay home strategy was tragicly flawed. Moving forward hang out with and learn from the vets. The advice US Sailing has offered in the past 4 Olympics is not worth what they charge for it i.e. nothing.
Hopefully your next 4 years will bring great rewards.
Bill Canfield