SailJuice Blog

More than 1,000 responses, and mostly this Olympic Classes 2012 Survey has gone down well with people. I think you’ve understood what I’m trying to achieve here. However, others have let me know how disappointed they are with the lack of choice available in the way I constructed the Survey. They don’t like the fact that I have stayed very closely to the current structure of the Olympic Regatta, its Events and Equipment. They are frustrated that I haven’t offered a wider choice of possibilities.

There is a good reason for this.

What I have tried to do with this Survey is to get you to consider the same issues that ISAF has to face next week. There is one very specific question that they must address, which is how to reduce 11… Read the rest

This is Part 3 of a series of articles looking at the Events and Equipment that will be contesting the Olympic Sailing Regatta in China next year. On 9th November, just a few days from now, the International Sailing Federation will vote on which 10 Events will constitute the Olympic Regatta in Weymouth 2012. An interesting task, considering that there are currently 11 Categories, so ONE MUST GO. This is your opportunity to have your say, by taking part in the SailJuiceBlog.com Olympic Classes 2012 Survey. Read on, and then if you want to add your voice to the Survey, click on the link below,

Olympic Classes Survey

The cost of Equipment is a major point of debate when it comes to discussing the relative merits of Olympic Classes. Yet in the five criteria that govern ISAF’s decisions over which… Read the rest

Friday morning, and the Olympic Classes 2012 Survey is close to 800 responses. Thanks to all who have contributed so far, and for all the intelligent comment, as well as the more flippant responses too. “International Moths and gay discos” indeed! If you don’t know what I’m talking about, then you probably missed my latest newsletter, SailingTalk Xpress, which also includes an interview with reigning 49er World Champion Stevie Morrison. If you’d like to sign up for future editions, then head over to my newsletter sign-up page.

Looking through the comments, cost of equipment is a big discussion point, so I’ve been doing some ringing around to the people in the know. This is a very difficult topic to get to the bottom of, as anyone engaged in a serious Olympic campaign will know. Retail price of a boat,… Read the rest

First 12 hours of the Survey, and we’re just getting past the 200-mark, and a lot of interesting data flowing in. Already some clear patterns are emerging, and it’s not making pretty reading for anyone who’s a fan of the… Sorry, going to keep you waiting a few hours longer for that one!

Instead, I’m going to address the question of Mixed Events, by which I mean compulsory Male/Female teams. It’s been a common theme to crop up in the Comments we’ve had back to the Bums On Seats article.

Today, Rory posts this comment: “Mixed Olympic sport? It took me all of two seconds to remember Gail Emms and Nathan Robinson winning Olympic medals playing badminton together, so yes, there are other sports with mixed teams. Also remember Cathy Foster and Pete Newlands winning that 470 race together and… Read the rest

Cast your Vote!

This is Part 2 of a series of articles looking at the Events and Equipment that will be contesting the Olympic Sailing Regatta in China next year. On 9th November, just a few days from now, the International Sailing Federation will vote on which 10 Events will constitute the Olympic Regatta in Weymouth 2012.

An interesting task, considering that there are currently 11 Categories, so ONE MUST GO. This is your opportunity to have your say, by taking part in the SailJuiceBlog.com Olympic Classes 2012 Survey. Read on, and then if you want to add your voice to the Survey, click on the link here,

Click here to go the Olympic Classes 2012 Survey

Why should you care?

Last week we looked at Bums On Seats, SailJuiceBlog.com’s measure of how many full-time teams are campaigning in each… Read the rest

Editor of Sailing World Magazine, Stuart Streuli, wrote in with his comment to the Bums On Seats article today. It turns out Stuart has given this topic of Olympic Class selection a lot of thought, and wrote an indepth article about this two years ago. Here’s an excerpt:

“The worst thing ISAF can do is approach this like it has in the past, creating a Survivor-style elimination in which the class with the least political savvy is voted off Olympic island. Instead ISAF should start from scratch, forcing each class to earn its Olympic status.

“Five easily make the grade: the men’s and women’s windsurfer divisions, the Laser and Laser Radial, and the 49er. Though I haven’t seen it in action, I’m willing to give the new RS:X sailboard the benefit of the doubt,… Read the rest

The Bums On Seats theorem has certainly got a lot of you off yours! Seats that is….

The response to this article has been overwhelming, and we’ve had a few comments from some quite eminent people in the sport. I won’t name names without their permission, but seeing as Pete Conway identified himself in his comment, I guess he won’t mind.

Pete, if I’m not mistaken, is a well-respected catamaran coach, so I wouldn’t expect him to agree wholeheartedly with the Bums On Seats angle, from which the Tornado does not emerge particularly strongly.

“A rather controversial approach to do the bums on seats bit!! The whole ethos of Olympic sailing involves superlatives – higher, stronger, faster. There is no underlying sport for all message in the rarified environment of Olympic sailing!!” says Pete.

And… Read the rest

What makes a good Olympic class? What do you think are the important criteria? Is it availability and affordability? Should it be high performance, or maybe low performance? After all sometimes the slower a boat, the more tactical the racing. But then faster boats can be more fun to sail, and certainly more fun to watch.

Is it media appeal? After all, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) say that minority interest sports like sailing and equestrianism need to start appealing to broader audiences to attract greater share of the global TV audience during the Olympic fortnight.

In a little more than two weeks from now, the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) will sit down to determine which will be the categories for the Olympic Regatta in Weymouth, England, in the summer of 2012.

So over the next two weeks, SailJuiceBlog.com will… Read the rest