In the first regatta towards Paris 2024 in just two years' time, Ireland's Tokyo 2020 competitors Robert Dickson and Seán Waddilove of Dublin are placed eighth overall after the opening rounds of the 49er skiff competition at the Princesa Sofia Regatta, scoring second, ninth and sixth on the Bay of Palma.

High winds threatened to disrupt the course area where the women's 49erFX event was also scheduled so the men sailed ashore after two races then returned for their third race of the day in the late afternoon.

"The first race was close to survival (conditions) but after that, it was proper racing even if a bit shifty and gusty," said Dickson.  "Right now, we're just focussing on qualifications and see what happens after that."

Royal Cork Séafra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan scored a ninth and a tenth in the same flight as their Dublin rivals for Paris 2024 and lie 38th overall out of 71 entries.

"We did well in the first two races this morning though capsized in the second race but managed to recover to top 15 so we're pretty happy," said Durcan.  "We're just taking the second day [of qualification on Wednesday] as another learning day and really enjoying it."

The 49er fleet have new masts, which have almost the same spec as the old mast so not too obvious outside of the fleet. However, the skiffs also have new sails, very similar in size to the old ones but being jet black in colour marking a dramatic change to the look of the class as depicted above. With the goal of increased consistency and durability, North Sails 3Di process won a competitive bid to build the 49er and FX sails for the quadrennial. So far about two-thirds of the fleet has been supplied with the new sails so the fleets are racing in Palma in any configuration of new and old sails they may wish to over the European spring season before the summer championships require the new sails. Photo: Sailing Energy

Fischer & Pequin on Top in 49er

Having missed out on selection for Tokyo in favour of Emile Amoros and Lucas Rual the French 49er duo Erwan Fischer and Clément Pequin are doubly determined to represent their nation in just over two years time in Marseille. They are hoping that the fact the national flag for their new, black 3Di sails did not arrive and they are sailing on their well used, older sails, proves to be a good omen for this time. They made a strong statement of intent today with two solid wins in breezy conditions which, again, put a premium on avoiding capsizes.

Fischer and Pequin dropped their rig in momentarily in the first race but a quick recovery allowed the duo who have been sailing together since 2018 to stay in the hunt. “We had 20-25kts which we like. It was pretty hard to keep the boat upright. We capsized at the bear away in the first race but recovered quickly. It was really choppy and shifty. We made good manoeuvres all the way through.”

“We wanted to use the new sails but we had an issue with our national flag. It did not arrive. And so we sailed with the old sails which we know well. In these conditions it is not about speed it is about surviving and good manoeuvres and gybing safely.”

Fourteenth here in 2019 they have just finished third in the Mallorca Sailing Centre training regatta after a winter training in Vilamoura, Portugal.

“Our selection race for Tokyo was very strong and very close and in the end we did not go. For sure this regatta feels like the start of our passage to Marseille and I hope today is a good omen.” Smiled Fischer.

49er FX

In the 49er FX, the Netherlands new combination of 2021 World champion, Odile Van Aanholt sailing with Tokyo bronze medallist Annette Duetz is off to a powerful start sharing the overall lead after three racess with Brazil’s double gold medallists Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze.

Dun Laoghaire's Saskia Tidey

Dun Laoghaire's Saskia Tidey is placed fifth overall in a fleet of 49 with new partner Freya Black in a TeamGB campaign for Paris

Also off to a solid start, in the 49erFx women's skiff, Dun Laoghaire's Saskia Tidey is placed fifth overall in a fleet of 49 with new partner Freya Black in a TeamGB campaign for Paris.

Racing continues on Wednesday for all fleets and the welcome prospect of milder conditions for the second half of the regatta continues until Saturday when the medal race finals for all classes will be sailed.

After recent warm-weather training, there should be no 'rustiness' from Irish Olympic campaigners keen to get on the right tack for Paris 2024 in Palma, Mallorca on Friday morning.

The Princess Sofia Regatta is the first major international event since the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo.

A team of seven Irish will join a fleet of 1,000 sailors, 800 boats and boards, representing 62 nations.

And with only 850 days to Paris, there is no shortage of competition with the regatta now exceeding organisers targets. But not all teams are in Palma, however, as Russian and Belarussian crews are excluded under an IOC directive.

Recent Irish training camp activity, some of it on the Mallorcan race track itself, means Ireland is in the hunt for some early Olympic class results.

Competing in the week-long regatta (Monday 4 to Saturday 9 April) is the National Yacht Club's Finn Lynch and Howth brothers Ewan and Jamie McMahon in the ILCA 7 (Laser).

Lynch finished in fourth place in the 2019 regatta but as regular Afloat readers know the Dun Laoghaire ace took second in the Worlds in Barcelona last November, so is highly regarded as Ireland's top hope for a podium place next Friday.

The Carlow native did, however, lack form at a recent training regatta at the venue just a fortnight ago, an event in which rival Ewan McMahon took tenth overall as Afloat reported here. 

Racing for the Lasers starts on Monday 4 April.

There will be no Irish interest in the Radial (ILCA 6) class, as the recently crowned Irish Sailor of the Year Eve McMahon focuses on her Leaving Certificate studies and clubmate Aoife Hopkins is recovering from COVID.

Starting a day later than the Lasers in Mallorca are Howth and Skerries 49er Olympians Robert Dickson and Seán Waddilove, and Royal Cork rivals Séafra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan in their first major competition following the 49er Worlds in Oman last November where both Irish boats made the gold fleet. 

Royal Cork 49er duo Séafra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan

The 49ers have been based in Lanzarote for a winter training camp and training hard as Prof O'Connell of North Sails Ireland discovered here.

This event is the first time that the 49er class can use new regulation equipment for Paris 2024 which includes the use of North's 3Di technology sails with their characteristic black colour.

Also racing from Dun Laoghaire is Saskia Tidey who has launched a new TeamGB 49erFX campaign.

Mallorca line up

• Monday 4 April - First day of racing for ILCAs, 470, iQFoils
• Tuesday 5 April - First day of racing for 49er, 49erFX, Nacra and Formula Kites

With the Paris 2024 Games less than two and a half years away, there is a sense of urgency and enthusiasm among competitors to be sailing in world-class competition once again. Following a two-year hiatus caused by the global pandemic, there is a renewed sense of optimism in the spring air of Palma, as many sailors get to see, and race against, each other once again.

Organised jointly by Club Nàutic S’Arenal, Club Marítimo San Antonio de la Playa and Real Club Náutico de Palma, the Trofeo Princesa Sofía has long been the regatta to mark the start of the European racing season for the Olympic fleets. However this year is the first time since 2014 that the event has been part of the Hempel World Cup, the annual circuit for the Olympic elite. It’s a vital event for competitors to see how their training has been going over the past months and years, and an opportunity to make a statement of intent on the world stage at the start of the Paris 2024 Olympic cycle.

This year’s regatta in Palma also marks the first time the new high-speed events in Olympic sailing line up at a world-class regatta alongside the more established classes. Here’s a rundown of the 10 events set to take place at this and other regattas in the 2022 Hempel World Cup Series:

FORMULA KITE

Formula Kite is a high performance hydrofoiling class using regulated series registered production equipment to limit campaign costs. Capable of speeds up to 40 knots, the foiling kiteboarders will become the fastest athletes in the 122-year history of Olympic sailing. Capable of achieving more than four-times wind speed in as little as 6 knots of breeze, the kitefoilers will be racing closest to the shore in Palma. To find out more, read here.

FORMULA KITE MEN

The French have been setting the pace in the early years of this new sport. Reigning world champion Theo de Ramecourt will be vying for French supremacy against the likes of Nico Parlier (son of Vendée Globe legend Yves) and Benoit Gomez. There are some seriously fast teenagers in this fleet too, notably Riccardo Pianosi from Italy who took third in the Worlds last season at the age of 16. Strong contingents from Spain and Denmark are entered, including four members from two generations of the Danish family, the Becketts.

FORMULA KITE WOMEN

The USA’s sole entry in the women’s division is also the stand-out talent in this fast-developing fleet. Daniela Moroz has been setting the pace in women’s kitefoiling for the past couple of seasons, including winning the Worlds last October. As with the men, the French are the strongest squad headed by the fast-improving Poema Newland. Ellie Aldridge is best of the British contingent, but the dark horse is Israel’s Gal Zukerman who, aged 15, notched up 18 straight race wins last December in Oman to win the 2021 Youth Sailing World Championships presented by Hempel. There’s plenty of local support for Gisela Pulido, a 10-time world champion in Freestyle, who also holds the record for youngest athlete to win a world championship in kitesurfing.

iQFOiL - WINDSURFING ON FOILS

iQFoil is a foiling windsurfing class selected by World Sailing to replace the traditional planing board used for the past four Olympic cycles, the RS:X. For many of the RS:X sailors from the Tokyo cycle, the switch to the iQFoil couldn’t come soon enough. Now they have a piece of equipment capable of generating 30 knots of speed in as little as 5 knots true wind. Not only that, but many of the Tokyo athletes have gone from limiting their food intake to keep the weight down, to piling on the pounds as much as possible to cope with the power in the iQFOiL rig. The men use a 9.0 m2 sail, and the women an 8.0 m2 sail. It’s estimated that the optimum racing weight for the men could be as high as 100kg.

iQFOiL MEN

There’s a huge local entry of 26 Spanish competitors, with Angel Granda Roque among the best of the home-grown talent. A big squad from the Netherlands too, not least the RS:X Olympic Champion from Tokyo 2020, Kiran Badloe, who has bulked up by more than 15kg since the Tokyo Games. Other high-performers from the RS:X era now competing on the foiling board include Mattia Camboni (ITA), Louis Giard (FRA) and Tom Squires (GBR).

iQFOiL WOMEN

As with the men, there’s been a switch from the RS:X board to the iQFOiL in the women’s windsurfing division. Bronze medallist from Tokyo, Emma Wilson heads up the British squad, while Pilar Lamadrid is one to watch in the Spanish squad, currently ranked 2nd in the World Ranking.. Brazil’s Giovanna Prada follows in the Olympic footsteps of her father Bruno who took silver and bronze in the Star keelboat at the Beijing and London Games alongside helmsman Robert Scheidt.

iQFoil is a foiling windsurfing class selected by World Sailing to replace the traditional planing board used for the past four Olympic cycles, the RS:X. For many of the RS:X sailors from the Tokyo cycle, the switch to the iQFoil couldn’t come soon enough. Now they have a piece of equipment capable of generating 30 knots of speed in as little as 5 knots true wind. Not only that, but many of the Tokyo athletes have gone from limiting their food intake to keep the weight down, to piling on the pounds as much as possible to cope with the power in the iQFOiL rig. The men use a 9.0 m2 sail, and the women an 8.0 m2 sail. It’s estimated that the optimum racing weight for the men could be as high as 100kg.

iQFOiL MEN

There’s a huge local entry of 26 Spanish competitors, with Angel Granda Roque among the best of the home-grown talent. A big squad from the Netherlands too, not least the RS:X Olympic Champion from Tokyo 2020, Kiran Badloe, who has bulked up by more than 15kg since the Tokyo Games. Other high-performers from the RS:X era now competing on the foiling board include Mattia Camboni (ITA), Louis Giard (FRA) and Tom Squires (GBR).

iQFOiL WOMEN

As with the men, there’s been a switch from the RS:X board to the iQFOiL in the women’s windsurfing division. Bronze medallist from Tokyo, Emma Wilson heads up the British squad, while Pilar Lamadrid is one to watch in the Spanish squad, currently ranked 2nd in the World Ranking.. Brazil’s Giovanna Prada follows in the Olympic footsteps of her father Bruno who took silver and bronze in the Star keelboat at the Beijing and London Games alongside helmsman Robert Scheidt.

All three Olympic medallists from Tokyo 2020 are among the line-up in the Nacra 17 foiling catamaran. Respectively the gold, silver and bronze medallists will be hard to beat: Ruggero Tita/Caterina Banti (ITA); John Gimson/Anna Burnet (GBR); Paul Kohlhoff/Alica Stuhlemmer (GER). Then again, there are leading lights from the Rio 2016 Games here too, including the 60-year-old Olympic gold medallist Santi Lange (ARG), recently teamed up with Victoria Travascio, and the Rio silver medallists Jason Waterhouse & Lisa Darmanin (AUS). Waterhouse has just arrived in Palma straight off the back of winning Season 2 of SailGP as flight controller aboard the Australian boat in San Francisco last weekend. The four-time World Champion Billy Besson dominated the early years of the Nacra 17 class and the Frenchman is back with new crew Noa Ancian to see if he can rekindle the glory years.

470 MIXED

Previously men and women competed in separate doublehanded 470 dinghy events. For Paris 2024, the men and women sail together in 470 Mixed, and it’s caused quite a lot of musical chairs within national squads. As with the Nacra 17 catamaran, the technical question of whether to sail with male helm/female crew or vice versa is always on the teams’ minds. Spain’s bronze medallist from Tokyo 2020 and only just back from skippering the Spanish F50 catamaran in the SailGP event in San Francisco last weekend, Jordi Xammar, is now teamed up with Nora Brugman on the trapeze. Among France’s strong line-up is former men’s world champion Kevin Peponnet who now sails with Aloise Retornaz, bronze medal crew from Tokyo 2020. The Women’s Olympic Champion from Tokyo, Eilidh McIntyre, is back in the boat, now with fellow Briton Martin Wrigley on the helm.

49er

All-new black sails and a new mast give an updated look to the 49er skiff, and there’s a changing of the guard too now that the all-time greats Pete Burling and Blair Tuke (NZL) have moved on from Olympic competition. The Briton that beat the Kiwi legends to Olympic gold last year, Dylan Fletcher (GBR), has teamed up with new crew Rhos Hawes to see if he can establish himself as the dominant force in the Paris cycle. Now in his 40s, the 2008 Olympic Champion from Denmark, Jonas Warrer, is back with a new crew Marcus Langagergaard. Diego Botin (ESP) narrowly missed out on the Olympic podium last year but is back with Nacra 17 Olympic representative Florian Trittel pulling the ropes on the Spanish skiff.

49erFX

The 49erFX fleet is also sporting black sails for the first time. Clear favourites are the double Olympic Champions Martine Grael & Kahena Kunze (BRA). The 2016 silver medallist Alex Maloney (NZL) is sailing with new crew Olivia Hobbs. After a few years’ break from Olympic campaigning, Sarah Steyeart is back on the 49er with RS:X windsurfing Olympic gold medallist Charline Picon switching to crewing at the front of the skiff. GBR Olympic crew and runner-up at the 2020 Worlds, Saskia Tidey is now crewing for Freya Black. Perhaps the strongest of the new pairings are the Dutch crew, with recently crowned World Champion Odile van Aanholt teaming up with former rival, the double world champion and Tokyo bronze medallist Annette Duetz. To find out more about the skiff fleets, read here.

ILCA 7

Technically the only major change in the singlehanded dinghies is the change of name. The Laser Standard is now the ILCA 7, but it’s the same faces who are likely to dominate. The Olympic Champion from Tokyo, Matt Wearn (AUS), remains the man to beat, although there are plenty who believe they can do so. These include the Olympic silver medallist at the last two Games, Tonci Stipanovic (CRO), and his training partner Pavlos Kontides (CYP), double world champion and silver medallist from London 2012. The reigning world champion Tom Saunders (NZL) is coming on strong, and the 2021 Worlds runner-up Finn Lynch (IRL) will also be in contention.

ILCA 6

Formerly known as the Laser Radial, the women’s singlehanded dinghy is now the ILCA 6. While the Olympic medallists from Tokyo 2020 are absent, all three medallists from the 2021 World Championship are in Palma: Emma Plasschaert (BEL), Agata Barwinska (POL) and Viktorija Andrulyte (LTU). Mara Stransky (AUS) and Vasileia Karachaliou (POR) are also likely contenders for the front of the fleet.

It was game on immediately for two Irish rivals at the Olympic 49er skiff class world championships in Mussanah, Oman on Tuesday. A new Royal Cork combination took a race win in their opening round while their Dublin rivals for the single Paris 2024 place won the last race of the day.

Cork dinghy ace Johnny Durcan with Tokyo campaigner Séafra Guilfoyle won their championship opening race in their flight. A ninth and an 18th followed, leaving the debutantes in the 18th, a mid-fleet overall standing at this early stage.

Tokyo 2020 Olympians Robert Dickson (Howth Yacht Club) and Seán Waddilove (Skerries Sailing Club) had a steadily improving day, building their form as the light breeze strengthened.

Tokyo 2020 Olympians Robert Dickson (Howth Yacht Club) and Seán Waddilove (Skerries Sailing Club)

The North Dublin pair had a 14th then tenth place before winning the third race to finish 14th overall.

Britain's Jack Hawkins and Chris Tomas, who are looking to emerge from the shadow of training partners of Dylan Fletcher and Stuart Bithell, the Tokyo 2020 gold medallists are tied with the French pair of Kevin Fischer Guillou and Noe’ Delpech. Both are experiencing their first tastes of sitting atop a big championship.

With only the two 49er fleets needing to sail qualifiers through Thursday, the fleets are aiming for three races each day. Though the shifty warm breezes kept the scores of even the leaders mixed, the sunshine will be the only consistent factor this week.

Turning Heads

The Path to Paris will have new faces. Otto Henry with Miles Davey (AUS) and Hernan Umpierre with Fernando Diz (URU) sit third and fourth on the 49er leaderboard respectively. They represent the next generation of skiff talent who have grown up sailing fast and upskilling through a combination of video and extreme sports. Of the four, Diz is the oldest born in 1999, the rest were born in the new millennium and it doesn’t look like they’re interested in starting from the back of the fleet and moving up.

The Uruguayan pair won the Asian Championship as the warm up to this year’s worlds. They have moved to Cadiz, Spain, for their university studies, but it’s clear their passions lie in sailing. Likewise, locked out of Australia, the young pair have been in Europe all summer racing and training, before they are allowed back home eventually.

The qualification round continues for another two days to determine the Gold and Silver fleet splits for the final game that concludes the event on Sunday (21st November 2021).

The venue has experienced light airs for the past two weeks, but a sea breeze on Wednesday has been forecast.

Oman Sail is preparing to welcome a 148-strong fleet representing 29 countries when the 2021 49er, 49erFX and Nacra the World Championships gets underway in Mussanah on 16 November.

Being held in Asia for the first time in event history, the regatta is one of the first global sailing events after the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and for some participants the start of the campaign to qualify for the Paris 2024 Games.

Ireland is represented by two 49er teams but alas no one in the women's 49er FX class where there is also an absence of Dun Laoghaire's Saskia Tidey who competed for Team GB in Tokyo.

Tokyo Olympians Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove were 11th at this week's Asian 49er Championships Photo: Sailing Energy

Representing Ireland are Tokyo Olympians Robert Dickson and Seán Waddilove of Howth YC and Skerries Sailing Club (2018 Afloat Sailors of the Year) and challengers for Paris, Séafra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan, both of Royal Cork Yacht Club.

Asian Championships

The Worlds is the first big event for both teams but not the first time the Irish rivals have met on the water.

They crossed swords last week at the 11-race pre-worlds or Asian Championships. It was first blood to the Tokyo Olympians as might be expected in the 30 boat fleet but not by that big a margin. Dickson and Waddilove finished 11th and the new Cork Harbour partnership finished 17th with a promising sixth scored in the penultimate race.

The 36-boat world championship will run from 16–21 November 2021 at the Barcelo Mussanah Resort, adding to Oman’s reputation as a world-class host and premier sailing nation.

The fleet includes Olympians, promising young sailors, high-performance doubles sailors and members of Oman’s national team, all looking to start their 2024 Olympic campaign in good form.

Teams are taking a breather after Tokyo 2020 and with Covid still causing travel issues, all three fleets will be heavily reduced at this regatta. That said, each class still contains some heavy hitters, so it will by no means be an easy ride to the top.

In the 49er class, none of the Olympic medalists from Tokyo are competing but that's not to say it leaves the prospect of a top result wide open with Olympians Łukasz Przybytek and Pawel Kolodzinski (POL), Benjamin Bildstein and David Hussl (AUT), and former world number one James Peters and Fynn Sterritt (GBR) all competing.

Ben Remocker, 49er Class Manager, said, “In this shortened cycle ahead of the Paris 2024 Games, every regatta is important. With such a strong and varied fleet, the competition should be fierce throughout the week. Oman is an ideal host venue, and a great choice for the first 49er, 49erFX and Nacra the World Championships to be held within Asia".

It was party time in Dun Laoghaire Harbour last Thursday night (September 23rd) to welcome home the Irish Olympic sailing team from last month's Tokyo Olympic Games.

Invited guests included Government Ministers, Olympians, local Dun Laoghaire Rathdown officials plus yacht club commodores and sponsors who were all back on the waterfront to hear Annalise Murphy's thoughts post-Tokyo as the team returned to its High-Performance HQ at the Irish Lights Depot.

Murphy's teammates, the 49er duo Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove were in attendance too along with the Tokyo backroom team.

Minister of State for Sport and the Gaeltacht Jack Chambers along with Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Ossian Smyth, the local Green Party TD, were invited to the outdoor function.

From Northern Ireland, 1984 and 1988, Olympian Bill O'Hara OBE was also at the get-together, as were members of the Olympic Federation of Ireland including CEO Peter Sherrard.

The Dun Laoghaire High Performance HQ was the venue for last Thursday night's homecoming celebrations of the Olympic Team

The Rio silver medalist signed off the evening by thanking Rory Fitzpatrick 'for being her coach' and updated the event on how she is adjusting to life as an MBA student at UCD.

Irish prospects for Paris 2024

Next on the agenda for the Irish Olympic sailing team is, of course, Paris 2024. With just three years to the first gun at Marseille, Thursday evening provided the chance to pitch Irish prospects.

The race for places has already begun with Polish duo Mikolaj Staniul / Kuba Sztorch crowned 49er European champions in Thessaloniki last week. Although no Irish crew participated at the Greek event, there are already triennial developments at home with Cork Harbour's Seafra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan announcing this month they will be making a bid for the single Irish men's skiff slot.

Finn Lynch, who was unsuccessful in his quest for a Tokyo Laser place, has already declared he will run again and it is expected Howth's Ewan McMahon will also be a contender. And in the Radial, McMahon's sister, Eve and Aoife Hopkins, both of Howth, will each seek the nomination.

Tokyo 2020 Review

A number of post-Tokyo reviews are being conducted. One is being undertaken by Irish Sailing, which, for the first time since Athens 2004, will be in the hands of "an external sports management expert", according to sailing president David O'Brien.

That's a process that will no doubt shine a light on the circumstances surrounding the controversially cut-short 2020 Radial selection procedure. 

The review is expected to be completed by year-end.

It's almost a month since the last sailing race of the Tokyo Olympics. In most sports, the end of each Olympic Quad (in this case a Quinq) is the traditional time for reflection on the previous campaign and consideration of the one (or more) ahead. It is also, traditionally, a time of changing personnel, both ashore and afloat. 

Deep thought is given by sports National Governing Bodies to current and future resources, both human and otherwise. This time around, the changes to the Olympic Sailing programme must be taken into the mix. During the Tokyo competition itself, Irish team management was acknowledging the need for a full debrief in order to"strengthen processes" in "every aspect of its preparations".

A key factor in the consideration is that, typically, not many of the Olympic Classes, have ever developed fleets with meaningful depth in Ireland, or, for that matter, in the UK. Think, Flying Dutchman, Soling, Star, Tempest, Europe, even 470. Except for the ILCA (Laser) fleets, aspiring Olympians in Ireland have to travel to get the competitive experience necessary to advance along the Olympic pathway.

Sailing talent

This raises the question of how to identify the talent worthy of support if they are not currently sailing the boat that they might aspire to.

The (hopefully temporary) rejection of an Offshore event in Paris in favour of kites, means that only three of the ten Olympic disciplines have Irish sailors anywhere on the world ranking lists.

As regular Afloat readers will know, Ireland targeted qualification in four Olympic classes for Tokyo but despite full-on campaigns ended up qualifying in only two.

While Annalise Murphy uses well-earned downtime to contemplate the future, Ireland's pool of sailors with proven talent is perhaps limited to Rob Dickson and Sean Waddilove in the 49er, Aisling Keller, Aoife Hopkins and Eve McMahon in the ILCA 6, and perhaps Finn Lynch in the ILCA7. Of course, there could be, and probably are, many others out there, but which of these would make it to the start line in Marseille in under three years time?

Annalise Murphy – well-earned downtime to contemplate the future Photo: Sailing Energy

Paris prospects - Rob Dickson and Sean Waddilove in the 49er Photo: Sailing Energy

Another uncertainty is the investment Sport Ireland are prepared to put into Irish High-Performance Sailing over the next three years.

No medal race finish

On average, just over €750,000 was granted to Irish Sailing every year since 2017. Will Sport Ireland be prepared to cough up the same, given the fairly meagre return of two classes qualified with results in the mid-teens and no medal race result?

Paris 2024

And how are we preparing for beyond Paris? Observers of this month's Laser 4.7 Youth Worlds on Dublin Bay pointed in frustration to the nationally supported squads of European sailors, where the Dutch, Italian, Spanish and Greek fleets seemed particularly well-organised and featured many sailors in the gold fleet. By contrast, the largest country by fleet numbers, Ireland, could only manage to get four out of 35 boys into the gold fleet and two of the 35 girls. If this is a pointer to future Olympic results, then Ireland will struggle to qualify.

Bold decisions

Irish Sailing should and probably will use the post-Olympic period to study clinically the quad just passed, apply the lessons learned to the next cycle, but perhaps most of all, consider a longer-term approach to developing talent considering ways to balance the investment in current and future talent. It may be time for bold decisions that may favour a bigger input of resources into youth sailing that may not pay off until Los Angeles 2028 or Brisbane 2032.

Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove would have done their best to heed the advice of their former coach Tytus Konarzewski  (who brought them to the Under-23 World Championship title success in 2018) and forget about yesterday’s two disqualifications as quickly as possible.

The Howth and Skerries pair made the best of the change in conditions and took two top ten results from this morning's light air proceedings. 

They finished in 8th, 18th and 9th position in Race 7, 8 and 9 respectively this morning, with the final three races to take place tomorrow.

Going into today's rounds and counting the unfortunate DSQs, the duo were in 13th on 57 points and 13 points off the top ten but despite the solid reset, however, the pair are now back one place to 14th overall after nine races and 22 points off the top ten for a coveted medal race place.

Saturday's three final fleet races are therefore crucial to Irish prospects of achieving a place in Monday's medal race which would be a major achievement for Dickson and Waddilove on their first Olympic outing.

Results and overall standings are here

In a 10-knot southerly breeze, sailing on the Zushi course, Ireland’s Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove finished second in race 5 behind Denmark, and followed that with a sixth in race 6 as the wind picked up today (Thursday 29 July).

These results move the Dublin 49er pair up from 11th place after four races to seventh position overall in the Tokyo 2020 49er standings, 14 points behind joint leaders Great Britain (1st on count back) and Spain.

Brazil’s Marco Grael, sailing with Gabriel Borges, was the winner in race 6, the second race of the day for the 49ers. Marco is a son of five-time Olympic medallist Torben and sister to Martine, current Olympic 49erFX champion and lying fifth overall in her class.

Dickson and Waddilove will be particularly pleased that, in both races, they improved position after mark 1. In the first race of the day, they came from 25 seconds behind Germany at the final weather mark to beat them by 2 seconds at the finish.

Their recovery was more dramatic in the day’s second race, improving from 12th at mark 1 to eighth across the finishing line. They were promoted to sixth place due to starting infringements by the Portuguese and Swiss boats.

“We’re feeling pretty good,” Waddilove said afterwards. “We had a pretty average day yesterday, but we learned from our mistakes and we were really nicely set up today so that made our life a lot easier.

“At the halfway point, we’re still ready to go. One race at a time — and still keep picking off the places. We had quite steady conditions, maybe medium winds and not too wavy.

“First race was just about going fast and keeping yourself clear out of other boats, not making too many mistakes and that was really it – just keep it simple around the racecourse. Really nice conditions here — I don’t think you can get much better.”

Find the full race results HERE.

Day two of the 49er event at the 2020 Olympic Games regatta proved a bit less successful for the Irish pairing of Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove after taking the first race in what was a dream debut.

Sailed in a 14 knot southerly, in bright sunny conditions, the Irish boat was consistently mid-fleet from 13th at mark 1 to 12th at the finish. Spain, Netherlands and New Zealand took the top three places.

There was a slight increase in wind speed for race 2 and once again the Irish pair sailed consistently to finish 11th. The race was remarkably close, with the first 13 boats crossing the finish line in just over 1 minute. Australia, Spain and Netherlands were the first three in this race, with the British a place behind in 4th.

Today's final race was completed in 16 knots and was won by Great Britain with New Zealand 2nd and Denmark 3rd. Ireland was less consistent in this race, dropping from 6th at Mark 1 to 13th at the finish.

Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove are lying 11th after four races sailed Photo: Sailing Energy

After the four completed races, the Irish boat is 11th overall.

GBR, ESP and AUS are currently occupying the top three places. There are two races scheduled for Thursday to make up for the two lost on Tuesday.

Speaking afterwards, Dickson said: “It was a lot windier and wavier, pretty nice conditions and pretty enjoyable!” with Waddilove agreeing before adding; “We’re not coming in confused or deflated.  We know what we need to change for the next day which are some simple things.”

Results are here

Annalise Murphy Back in competition on Thursday

Ireland's Annalise Murphy returns to the water on Thursday as well, with winds forecast to build during the day.

The regatta is using six race areas. To date the Radials have sailed on the more inshore Enoshima and Kamakura courses, tomorrow they will sail on the Fujisama course.

The 49ers sailed on Enoshima on day 1, Sagami today and will be on Zushi tomorrow. The inshore courses are reported to suffer from backwash in these onshore breezes. There should be a cleaner wave regime in the outer courses.

The Tokyo Olympic Regatta race areas

Since winning Olympic gold in the Men’s Skiff – 49er at Rio 2016 five years ago, Pete Burling and Blair Tuke (NZL) have packed a whole lifetime of sailing achievements into their busy careers.

In 2017 Burling steered Emirates Team New Zealand’s foiling catamaran to victory at the America’s Cup in Bermuda, with Tuke further forward running the flight control for his best mate. A year later they were pitched against each other on rival boats in their first round-the-world adventure. Coming into the finish of the final leg of that year-long marathon called the Volvo Ocean Race, Burling or Tuke looked set to emerge as first-time winners of the race, before being pipped by the other boat, the Chinese, in a three-way, last-gasp battle for victory.

Earlier this year Burling and Tuke were again right at the core of New Zealand’s successful defence of the America’s Cup. This was meant to have happened after the Tokyo 2020 Games, but with the year’s postponement, the Kiwis had to hop straight off their multimillion-dollar foiling AC75 spaceship and reacquaint themselves with the somewhat more affordable, simpler pleasures of 49er racing.

New Zealand's Burling and Tuke start as 49er favourites in Tokyo

Despite the distractions of the Volvo Ocean Race, two America’s Cup campaigns, and more recently the SailGP circuit, the six-time World Champions still start as favourites for 49er gold in Tokyo.

Among the Tokyo line-up is Ireland’s debutantes Sean Waddilove and Rob Dickson who probably wouldn’t have made it to Tokyo if it had taken place in 2020, but this young team made the most of winter training in southern Europe to really show that they mean business. The young Irish crew earned the final spot for Tokyo competing at the Lanzarote International Regatta in March, winning their first-ever Medal Race at the event and seizing a bronze medal ahead of a world-class fleet. 

Among the challengers to the Kiwi crown are the bronze medallists from Rio 2016, Erik Heil and Tommy Ploessel (GER) who always turn it on for the big occasion. Despite taking time out from their campaign, they scored second at the 2019 Worlds and third at the 2020 Worlds. Now in their early 30s, Heil and Ploessel feel ready for another life-defining performance in Tokyo.

"We want to win a medal again," said Heil, "preferably in an even more beautiful colour than last time."

Medical student Heil and mechanical engineering graduate Ploessel ran the Kiwis close for the 2019 world title in Auckland. "We have come closer to them, closer than ever before," Heil remarked at the time.

In with a shout of a medal at the end of Rio 2016 was Great Britain's Dylan Fletcher who, crewed by Alain Sign, ended up sixth overall. Fletcher has since teamed up with Stu Bithell, Olympic silver medallist in the 470 at London 2012. Fletcher is focused, sometimes spiky, while Bithell appears to be the entertainer but is far more than that. From being rivals they have become good mates and have strung together some good results over the past four years, including victory at the 2017 World and European Championships.

However, in 2017 Burling and Tuke were absent from the 49er as they raced their way around the Volvo Ocean Race world. Fletcher and Bithell haven’t beaten the Kiwis at a World Championship, so do they have the self-belief to take away the Olympic crown from their feted rivals?

Bithell admits the duo are "super tough competition".

"We’re up against perhaps the most successful sailing team in the world – they are formidable together," he expressed. "I like to put a positive spin on things and say it creates an opportunity for us to go out and beat the best team in the world."

Spain’s Diego Botin and Iago Marra have spent the last few years chipping away at the front of the 49er fleet, gradually improving their scores season by season. The Spanish team were fourth at the 2019 Worlds and runners-up in 2020 to their regular training partners Burling and Tuke, who they know probably better than anyone in the Olympic fleet.

The Beijing 2008 Olympic Champion Jonas Warrer is back representing Denmark, crewed by Jakob Precht Jensen. In 2008, even Warrer would admit he used more than his fair share of fortune to clinch gold in the most extraordinary and controversial of circumstances. Contrary to predictions of a windless Beijing, the 49er Medal Race that year proved extremely breezy and enormously wavy, and everyone was unprepared and underweight for those heinous conditions.

"I was sailing before the start with my crew Martin Kirketerp," Warrer recalls. "We broke the mast half a minute after hoisting the spinnaker. We thought our regatta was over but we rushed ashore and the Croatians lent us their boat for the race." There’s much more to that incredible story, but the story now is can the 42-year-old repeat gold, 13 years on?

Warrer knows what it’s like to finish first, and he knows how it feels to finish fourth, his position at Rio 2016. "I had a break from sailing after Rio, but I think my idea was to do another Olympics. I know what it’s like to be in the medals and to be out of the medals. Winning a medal is more fun."

Warrer’s crew Jensen is hoping the spirit of 2008 returns to carry them to victory.

"Leading the regatta, breaking a mast and winning a medal, let’s do that again," jokes Jensen about his helmsman’s streak of Beijing luck. "Of course we want to come away from Tokyo with a medal and if it’s made of gold, even better."

Sime Fantela became the first sailor to win a sailing gold medal for Croatia in the 470 class five years ago in Rio. Teaming up with his brother Mihovil, Sime made a rapid and successful switch to the 49er. The brothers won the 2018 World Championship after just 18 months in this demanding class. They’re probably an outside bet for the 49er podium, but Sime is a wily competitor who’s unlikely to be intimidated by the occasion.

Another couple of brothers to watch out for, particularly if the breeze and the big waves kick in, are first-time Olympians Will and Sam Phillips racing for Australia. Following in the wake of the London 2012 gold medallists and Rio 2016 silver medallists, Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen, the Aussie siblings have big footloops to fill, but a recent big wave training session on the Queensland coast with Burling and Tuke should stand them in good stead for the Pacific swell of Enoshima.

Others to watch include Austria’s Benjamin Bildstein and David Hussl, who have a very good record on Olympic waters with the high point being a silver medal at the Hempel World Cup Series Enoshima two years ago. They were bronze medallists at the 2017 Worlds, with sixth in 2019 and fourth in 2020, very consistent scores that make the Austrians a real threat for the podium.

The fast-improving Dutch team of Bart Lambriex and Pim van Vugt are starting to look like the real deal, regularly finishing in the top six of major events.

The 49er fleet features 19-world class teams. They will sail an Opening Series of 12 races, with the first three races scheduled for Tuesday 27 July on the Enoshima course, starting at 1445 JST. Their Medal Race on Monday 2 August will bring their competition to a close.

A full list of competitors is available here.

-Andy Rice