Silver Fleet for Ireland At Women's Laser Radial World Championship

18th April 2016

Ireland's Annalise Murphy is among other competitors trying to squeeze past the Committee Boat vessel at the start of a qualifying race at the Women's Laser Radial World Championship in Mexico Credit: JLDigitalmedia

Both Annalise Murphy and Aoife Hopkins will complete the 71–boat Women's Laser Radial World Championship in the Silver fleet following the conclusion of the fourth and final day of qualifying races in difficult conditions yesterday. The Irish Olympic class trialists finished 40th and 46th respectively missing the top 35 cut for Gold fleet participation. The final rounds begin today and run over the remaining three days of competition on Banderas Bay, Mexico.

Looking very much like an Olympic regatta dress rehearsal, currently the top 12 places are filled by 12 different countries with some familiar names at the top of the star–studded fleet. First is Marit Bouwmeester (NED), second Paige Railey (USA) and third Alison Young (GBR). The Olympic Gold Medallist Lijia Xu (CHN) is tenth overall.

Yesterday, the starting sequence for the first race (R7 for Yellow) began at 1400h, but a shift to the right led to a postponement. After settling in at about 10 knots from WSW, this fleet started cleanly, but a general recall for the Blue Fleet gave time for the wind to shift back to the left. The Race committee adjusted the course and the Blue Fleet started under a black flag restriction in 12-14 knots of building breeze and clearing skies.

But the wind oscillations in that first hour foretold the challenges to race committee for the afternoon. A general recall for R8-Yellow led to further postponements as the race committee adjusted marks and the line as the wind continued to oscillate, and lessen. That fleet started, but the race was abandoned on the first beat as the winds became less stable, with variability in strength and direction across the course. The Blue Fleet never started, and all competitors were sent in for the day.

This closes the Qualifying Series. The scores in all races still count to a sailor’s final score, but now the Gold Fleet will contain the top sailors, based on the Qualifying races. These sailors will be competing for the Championship. Marit Bouwmeester (NED) and Paige Railey (USA) still hold the top two places. Alison Young (GBR) has moved into third place, followed by Erika Reinecke (USA), and Gintare Scheidt (LTU).

Top 12 before Gold fleet racing

1st	206333	Marit Bouwmeester	NED	(17.0)	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	3.0	2.0	26.0	9.0
2nd	197111	Paige Railey	USA	(9.0)	3.0	4.0	3.0	1.0	1.0	7.0	28.0	19.0
3rd	202411	Alison Young	GBR	(11.0)	1.0	7.0	6.0	2.0	4.0	3.0	34.0	23.0
4th	184454	Erika Reineke	USA	3.0	2.0	3.0	3.0	7.0	(37.0 BFD)	5.0	60.0	23.0
5th	202750	Gintare Volungeviciute Scheidt	LTU	8.0	2.0	4.0	2.0	6.0	(9.0)	2.0	33.0	24.0
6th	207194	Anne-Marie Rindom	DEN	(27.0)	6.0	3.0	5.0	4.0	2.0	8.0	55.0	28.0
7th	199066	Manami Doi	JPN	(13.0)	10.0	5.0	11.0	4.0	4.0	1.0	48.0	35.0
8th	204468	Brenda Bowskill	CAN	8.0	(25.0)	9.0	10.0	2.0	2.0	4.0	60.0	35.0
9th	205491	Luca Falasca	ARG	4.0	12.0	2.0	7.0	11.0	1.0	(21.0)	58.0	37.0
10th	177117	Lijia Xu	CHN	1.0	8.0	(19.0)	4.0	7.0	17.0	1.0	57.0	38.0
11th	204452	Dolores Moreira Fraschini	URU	2.0	15.0	10.0	2.0	14.0	3.0	(19.0)	65.0	46.0
12th	202441	Sara Winther

Full results here

Published in Olympic

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Irish Olympic Sailing FAQs

How long has Ireland been sailing at the Olympics?

Ireland’s representation in sailing at the Olympics dates back to 1948, when a team consisting of Jimmy Mooney (Firefly), Alf Delany and Hugh Allen (Swallow) competed in that year’s Summer Games in London (sailing off Torquay). Except for the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, Ireland has sent at least one sailor to every Summer Games since then.

Who has sailed for Ireland at the Olympics, and when?

How many Olympic medals has Ireland won in sailing?

Ireland has won two Olympics medals in sailing events, both silver: David Wilkins, Jamie Wilkinson in the Flying Dutchman at Moscow 1980, and Annalise Murphy in the Laser Radial at Rio 2016.

Who is on the current Irish Sailing Olympic team?

The current team, as of December 2020, consists of Laser sailors Finn Lynch, Liam Glynn and Ewan McMahon, 49er pairs Ryan Seaton and Seafra Guilfoyle, and Sean Waddilove and Robert Dickson, as well as Laser Radial sailors Annalise Murphy and Aoife Hopkins.

What is the National Governing Body for sailing in Ireland?

Irish Sailing is the National Governing Body for sailing in Ireland.

Who is responsible for selecting Ireland’s Olympic sailors?

Irish Sailing’s Performance division is responsible for selecting and nurturing Olympic contenders as part of its Performance Pathway.

What is the Performance Pathway?

The Performance Pathway is Irish Sailing’s Olympic talent pipeline. The Performance Pathway counts over 70 sailors from 11 years up in its programme.The Performance Pathway is made up of Junior, Youth, Academy, Development and Olympic squads. It provides young, talented and ambitious Irish sailors with opportunities to move up through the ranks from an early age. With up to 100 young athletes training with the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway, every aspect of their performance is planned and closely monitored while strong relationships are simultaneously built with the sailors and their families

Who is the Irish Sailing Performance head coach?

Rory Fitzpatrick is the head coach of Irish Sailing Performance. He is a graduate of University College Dublin and was an Athens 2004 Olympian in the Laser class.

Who is Irish Sailing’s Performance Director?

The Performance Director of Irish Sailing is James O’Callaghan. Since 2006 James has been responsible for the development and delivery of athlete-focused, coach-led, performance-measured programmes across the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway. A Business & Economics graduate of Trinity College Dublin, he is a Level 3 Qualified Coach and Level 2 Coach Tutor. He has coached at five Olympic Games and numerous European and World Championship events across multiple Olympic classes. He is also a member of the Irish Sailing Foundation board.

Who is the most famous Irish Olympic sailor?

Annalise Murphy is by far and away the biggest Irish sailing star. Her fourth in London 2012 when she came so agonisingly close to a bronze medal followed by her superb silver medal performance four years later at Rio won the hearts of Ireland. Murphy is aiming to go one better in Tokyo 2021.

Who are the Irish Sailing Performance coaching staff?

Under head coach Rory Fitzpatrick, the coaching staff consists of Laser Radial Academy coach Sean Evans, Olympic Laser coach Vasilij Zbogar and 49er team coach Matt McGovern.

How is performance sailing in Ireland funded?

The Irish Government provides funding to Irish Sailing. These funds are exclusively for the benefit of the Performance Pathway. However, this falls short of the amount required to fund the Performance Pathway in order to allow Ireland compete at the highest level. As a result the Performance Pathway programme currently receives around €850,000 per annum from Sport Ireland and €150,000 from sponsorship. A further €2 million per annum is needed to have a major impact at the highest level. The Irish Sailing Foundation was established to bridge the financial gap through securing philanthropic donations, corporate giving and sponsorship.

What is the Irish Sailing Foundation?

The vision of the Irish Sailing Foundation is to generate the required financial resources for Ireland to scale-up and execute its world-class sailing programme. Irish Sailing works tirelessly to promote sailing in Ireland and abroad and has been successful in securing funding of 1 million euro from Sport Ireland. However, to compete on a par with other nations, a further €2 million is required annually to realise the ambitions of our talented sailors. For this reason, the Irish Sailing Foundation was formed to seek philanthropic donations. Led by a Board of Directors and Head of Development Kathryn Grace, the foundation lads a campaign to bridge the financial gap to provide the Performance Pathway with the funds necessary to increase coaching hours, upgrade equipment and provide world class sport science support to a greater number of high-potential Irish sailors.

How are the funds raised for the Performance Pathway spent?

The Senior and Academy teams of the Performance Pathway are supported with the provision of a coach, vehicle, coach boat and boats. Even with this level of subsidy there is still a large financial burden on individual families due to travel costs, entry fees and accommodation. There are often compromises made on the amount of days a coach can be hired for and on many occasions it is necessary to opt out of major competitions outside Europe due to cost. Money raised by the Irish Sailing Foundation will go towards increased quality coaching time, world-class equipment, and subsiding entry fees and travel-related costs. It also goes towards broadening the base of talented sailors that can consider campaigning by removing financial hurdles, and the Performance HQ in Dublin to increase efficiency and reduce logistical issues.

What is the organisation structure of the Performance Pathway?

The ethos of the Performance Pathway is progression. At each stage international performance benchmarks are utilised to ensure the sailors are meeting expectations set. The size of a sailor will generally dictate which boat they sail. The classes selected on the pathway have been identified as the best feeder classes for progression. Currently the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway consists of the following groups: * Pathway (U15) Optimist and Topper * Youth Academy (U19) Laser 4.7, Laser Radial and 420 * Development Academy (U23) Laser, Laser Radial, 49er, 49erFX * Team IRL (direct-funded athletes) Laser, Laser Radial, 49er, 49erFX

What is the governance structure for performance sailing?

The Irish Sailing performance director produces a detailed annual budget for the programme which is presented to Sport Ireland, Irish Sailing and the Foundation for detailed discussion and analysis of the programme, where each item of expenditure is reviewed and approved. Each year, the performance director drafts a Performance Plan and Budget designed to meet the objectives of Irish Performance Sailing based on an annual review of the Pathway Programmes from Junior to Olympic level. The plan is then presented to the Olympic Steering Group (OSG) where it is independently assessed and the budget is agreed. The OSG closely monitors the delivery of the plan ensuring it meets the agreed strategy, is within budget and in line with operational plans. The performance director communicates on an ongoing basis with the OSG throughout the year, reporting formally on a quarterly basis.

What is the Olympic Steering Group?

Due to the specialised nature of Performance Sport, Irish Sailing established an expert sub-committee which is referred to as the Olympic Steering Group (OSG). The OSG is chaired by Patrick Coveney and its objective is centred around winning Olympic medals so it oversees the delivery of the Irish Sailing’s Performance plan.

How is progress monitored on the Performance Pathway? Who decides when sailors are selected or dropped?

At Junior level (U15) sailors learn not only to be a sailor but also an athlete. They develop the discipline required to keep a training log while undertaking fitness programmes, attending coaching sessions and travelling to competitions. During the winter Regional Squads take place and then in spring the National Squads are selected for Summer Competitions. As sailors move into Youth level (U19) there is an exhaustive selection matrix used when considering a sailor for entry into the Performance Academy. Completion of club training programmes, attendance at the performance seminars, physical suitability and also progress at Junior and Youth competitions are assessed and reviewed. Once invited in to the Performance Academy, sailors are given a six-month trial before a final decision is made on their selection. Sailors in the Academy are very closely monitored and engage in a very well planned out sailing, training and competition programme. There are also defined international benchmarks which these sailors are required to meet by a certain age. Biannual reviews are conducted transparently with the sailors so they know exactly where they are performing well and they are made aware of where they may need to improve before the next review.