SAILING:THE ANNUAL Miami Olympic classes regatta taking place this week marks the start of an intensive build-up for London 2012, and there have been strong performances so far for key Irish interest taking part. Over 700 competitors from 50 nations are taking part.
Ireland’s Peter O’Leary and David Burrows were hoping to repeat the Star gold medal success from last August at the Weymouth games venue and have been lying in the top 20 of their 57-strong division. However, a 14th and a 30th place yesterday with just today’s courses remaining dropped the pair from 13th to 16th overall despite winning the second race of the series. Inclusion in the medal race at this event appears unlikely.
Annalise Murphy from Dún Laoghaire moved into third overall in the Laser Radial fleet earlier this week thanks to two second places on Tuesday, boosting her hopes for a place in the Irish squad for Weymouth next year. A fifth and a sixth on Wednesday has set her on course for a place in the medal race. Light winds delayed racing yesterday until late in the afternoon with postponements threatening the schedule.
But the focus on the one-design classes that form the backbone of the semi-professional world of elite sailing isn’t limited to these fleets in far-flung and balmier climates. For those who are seeking a taste of elite level racing closer to home, the Star class will hold its European Championship in Ireland this autumn. It will be the first Olympic class championship held on Irish waters since 2001 Laser Worlds in Crosshaven.
Timed to be held just after August’s pre-Olympic regatta in Weymouth and the shipping deadline for the World Championships in Perth in November, the prospect of between 40 and 60 top Star sailors competing in Ireland could spark interest in this class.
Yet the Star is almost certain to be dropped from the Games after 2012, and only an improbable reversal of a decision by the International Sailing Federation can change the outcome for this 100-year-old design that has witnessed the best from top talent such as Torben Grael, Paul Cayard and, more recently, Iain Percy. So why has the Star or, for that matter, any of the revered one-designs, withstood the pressure of time and dozens of newer boats that appear on the scene and acquire international standing with apparent ease?
Rival contenders to O’Leary and Burrows for the single place in the Star are Max Treacy and Anthony Shanks. “There are several aspects to the boat’s popularity: it’s a class where the generation gap doesn’t count,” said Treacy this week. “The Star has a very powerful rig and it uses the same sails whether in light airs or heavy winds.”
Treacy points to Grael, who was winning world titles in the fleet at the age of 47. It’s the part of sailing that forgives age yet still demands a physical commitment. The “tweakiness” and tactics unique to the Star and many different boat designs are often the unseen side to the sport, while simpler joys such as boat-handling or class association ties are only known to those who have taken the time to discover them.
