Its probably not a coincidence that in recent years the demise of US sailing is paralleled to the reduction in sailing weight of the boats selected by World Sailing. In your day at a Finn Gold Cup, perhaps 6 out of the top 10 might be US sailors, In the Star it was similar. Nowadays with one exception if you are over 80-82 KGs, you are over weight. ATM, in the mixed 470, the helms are tiny, and the crew 6' 4", and 73 KGs these people are not normal. Body weight in the US debars many of the best US sailors from competing in Olympic sailing. In an effort to be more diverse Olympic sailing is perversely more diverse, by blocking sailing classes that cater for heavier people. I accept that Olympic athletes are not normal, they are but nature exceptional, but there are exceptional heavy sailors who can't compete in the Games.
I live in England and my son (age 15) is a keen ILCA6 racer.
All the keen boys want to get on the ILCA7 Mens British Sailing Team (BST).
The BST has 4 members and they are full-time sailors - paid to sail. One of them, Michael Beckett, stands a good chance of winning the gold at Paris2024.
The problem is the level under this BST level - The RYA call it the British Sailing Squad (BSS).
But BSS members receive no money whatsoever - so it falls on parents to fund everything.
Hi Richard, Thank you for the reply. I'm glad to hear about your son. Funding is a problem in the pipeline for most countries. The more Olympic medals a country wins the better the funding from UK Sport. That is the overriding priority. I'm sure the National Governing Bodies would prefer to spread out the funding more going to the pipeline but it's a real balancing act.
Richard The Political masters who provide the funding, very clearly specify where it goes. Like all politicians they want instant results and hence do not see a long term feeder level being useful politically to them. Politicians are very good about talking about the future and the view over the horizon just not good on funding it they need to be guided to fund a longer lead in. Tomorrows BSS are members of the BST in 2025 and they need to understand that.
Thank you Alberto. The youth program is going to be a major focus of this newsletter. They are the future and there is no reason why US Sailing can't implement a world class program. It can't happen fast enough!
Its probably not a coincidence that in recent years the demise of US sailing is paralleled to the reduction in sailing weight of the boats selected by World Sailing. In your day at a Finn Gold Cup, perhaps 6 out of the top 10 might be US sailors, In the Star it was similar. Nowadays with one exception if you are over 80-82 KGs, you are over weight. ATM, in the mixed 470, the helms are tiny, and the crew 6' 4", and 73 KGs these people are not normal. Body weight in the US debars many of the best US sailors from competing in Olympic sailing. In an effort to be more diverse Olympic sailing is perversely more diverse, by blocking sailing classes that cater for heavier people. I accept that Olympic athletes are not normal, they are but nature exceptional, but there are exceptional heavy sailors who can't compete in the Games.
An excellent analysis.
I live in England and my son (age 15) is a keen ILCA6 racer.
All the keen boys want to get on the ILCA7 Mens British Sailing Team (BST).
The BST has 4 members and they are full-time sailors - paid to sail. One of them, Michael Beckett, stands a good chance of winning the gold at Paris2024.
The problem is the level under this BST level - The RYA call it the British Sailing Squad (BSS).
But BSS members receive no money whatsoever - so it falls on parents to fund everything.
It's at this level that the 'pipeline' fails.
Hi Richard, Thank you for the reply. I'm glad to hear about your son. Funding is a problem in the pipeline for most countries. The more Olympic medals a country wins the better the funding from UK Sport. That is the overriding priority. I'm sure the National Governing Bodies would prefer to spread out the funding more going to the pipeline but it's a real balancing act.
Regards,
John
Richard The Political masters who provide the funding, very clearly specify where it goes. Like all politicians they want instant results and hence do not see a long term feeder level being useful politically to them. Politicians are very good about talking about the future and the view over the horizon just not good on funding it they need to be guided to fund a longer lead in. Tomorrows BSS are members of the BST in 2025 and they need to understand that.
This whole website is amazing, let’s keep this conversation going! How can youth programs loop into this?
Thank you Alberto. The youth program is going to be a major focus of this newsletter. They are the future and there is no reason why US Sailing can't implement a world class program. It can't happen fast enough!