Olympic sailing class considerations

[Sandy Beach]

Here's an interesting article about factors relating to the various sailboat classes considered, to help keep sailing as a future sport in the Olympics.

<a href="/http://www.internationalkiteboarding.or ... Itemid=140" target="_blank">IKO article on sailing class considerations for the future Olympics</a>

<a href="/http://jimbodouglass.blogspot.com/2010/ ... lboat.html" target="_blank">original James' Blog on the topic</a>

Kiteboarding will be the new sailing class.

<a href="/http://www.internationalkiteboarding.or ... Itemid=266" target="_blank">Kiteboarding chosen for Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympics</a>

[KUS]

---

[nanmoo]

More on this, lawsuit now involved, kinda lame that it seems they had to chose rather than include...

Especially when the summer Olympics has dozens of stupid obscure sports that far fewer people would care if they cut.

[KUS]

----

[KayakDoc]

ISAF is not pleased with the RS:X legal challenge (see quote below). Demanding to be let back into the clubhouse a) by those that rejected you in the first place b) that you continue to fight with and c) own the clubhouse, is going to be a tough go for RS:X.

(quote) The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) has been notified of a legal challenge by the International RS:X Class Association to the decision taken at the ISAF Council meeting, in May 2012, to select kiteboarding for the Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition.

"ISAF intends to fully defend the decision of the ISAF Council, which was made in accordance with the ISAF Regulations and the defined decision making processes of ISAF", says the statement issued by the governing body.
"ISAF expects the normal submission process to be used in order to ask Council to reconsider its decisions and therefore ISAF is extremely disappointed that this course of action has been taken, not least because responding to legal claims will incur substantial and unnecessary legal costs for ISAF and for the Class itself". (end quote)

I suspect RS:X has made a huge mistake by suggesting that kiteboarding is not presently capable/safe/mature enough for Olympic inclusion. It might be best if they focus exclusively on RS:X being a viable Olympic event and hopefully find a conciliatory avenue for co-inclusion in the single ISAF Olympic Sailing “board” slot.

The RS:X response to rejection seems highly tainted by Neil Pryde’s business agenda. It might be best if RS:X distant itself from Neil Pryde and focus on getting reinstated as a co-participant in the Rio games.

The ISAF November meeting is going to be very interesting, but I suspect the opening event of the 2013 ISAF Olympic Class World Cup this December in Melbourne will have Kite Board Racing and very likely not have RS:X racing (baring a legal injunction).

The Olympics are four years away and things are already out of control. I can only imagine how crazy the party will be in Rio in 2016. Yeeee Haawww!!!!

[more force 4]

Did anyone see the Neville Sayers open letter? http://www.windsurfingtour.com/?p=5323 Some interesting observations from someone who kites and windsurfs competitively (and had his own 150 stitch kitemare); he won't let his kids kite, and he thinks that there will be huge problems getting kiting into sailing youth training programs. Apparently insurance companies won't cover sailing programs that include kiting.

The vote that replaced ws. with kiting was apparently worded very confusingly, and the Spanish delegation apologized for their vote (it was for kiting when they intended it to be for windsurfing). I think that is the root of the decision to ask for another vote.

Be great if they could include both board sports; but there are limits on the number of boat classes; but one the bigger/more expensive boats could surely be dropped.

Its a moot point anyway if we never get to see it; I could only find some clunky internet coverage of sailing, I don't think any of it was on mainstream TV. And they had some amazing conditions at Weymouth, lots of planing action, great GPS technology to show exactly who was ahead; huge crowds on shore; and apparently an absolutely stunning opening ceremony.

[Vik]

I read Sayres letter....

There was and still is a major battle going on in Olympic cycling when newer events [ie. BMX] came in at the expense of other long established cycling events. Nobody likes to see the event they care about get dropped from the games, but there isn't enough time for as many events as you could possibly want to run.

Safety doesn't seem to be a key consideration when selecting Olympic sports. You can name quite a few that have seen deaths and serious injury. Somebody let their kids compete in luge, downhill skiing, aerial ski jumping, etc... and somebody insures them. All the kiteboarding schools get insurance to teach kiting so it's not something that can't be sorted out.

Really interesting that people are suggesting their delegates voted incorrectly because:

- they didn't read the ballot carefully
- couldn't understand the language used
- they were napping
- they went rogue

I guess countries need to invest a bit more time in selecting who represents them at these votes... If the ISF voting is a sham for these reasons the countries who are upset need to look in the mirror and take the process more seriously.

I suspect the US Sailing supported kiteboard course sailing over WS because 1) that's where the energy in this niche of the sport is going [same with MTBing and snowboarding in their eras] 2) light wind capabilities of kite racing open up more potential venues and allow for more likelihood of getting races done.

Personally I'm looking forward to watching the KB course racing in Rio. Hopefully we'll see Pasta and his rasta board competing for Canada...

[JL]

I find it ridiculous that windsurfing was dropped to fit in kite racing. Surely both sports could be accommodated. & I too read Nevil's letter. It was vague with respect to his accident. Was he wearing a helmet ? Is he a competent kiter ? Has he had safety training ? I remember a sad day @ Nitinat when a WINDSURFER died. (fin cut to his femoral artery) I would suggest members of our society are more @ risk not getting any exercise than participating in sport. It's great to see Greg (pasta for breakfast) & Phil (kayakdoc) pursuing kite racing & I'm sure more of our community will join them. Imagine weekend races @ Nitinat !!! I remember casual windsurfing races in Oregon (Flores lake 1986). Everyone was encouraged to participate & the slower racers were allowed an early start to even things out. No flags or committee boats just a few buoys & a start gun.

[thankgodiatepastafobreaky]

Vik I still want to go to Goa with you and train an Indian Team! Seriously.

[Blackie]

Did anyone see the Neville Sayers open letter? http://www.windsurfingtour.com/?p=5323 Some interesting observations from someone who kites and windsurfs competitively (and had his own 150 stitch kitemare)...

There's an earlier article along with photos of the injuries here: http://www.sail-world.com/index.cfm?nid=97327

Also a massive thread regarding the accident on kite forum: http://www.kiteforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2375823

No one has an exact date on the accident but it seems like it occurred several years ago...

[thankgodiatepastafobreaky]

I have to agree that kiting is dangerous, and racing a kiteboard seems to multiply the danger exponentially. There are 3 or 4 huge daggers cutting the water at up to 40 knots of speed, and the board is trying to buck you off at every twitch of your balance. And then there are all the kites sailing so closely that any one of them could fubar all the rest around any mark. ('how do they not hit each other??' apparently there is an unwritten rule that you can't stop or sign your kite before the start, is one reason)

Sooo people like to watch Nascar and especially like the crashes. This could be THE main reason that they chose the sport for the olympics. So far no fatalities in racing that I know of... but those daggers are really sketchy. I have no kids (yet) and don't want to be in my Victoria Geezers home glad that I was safe enough to make it there. Life is about risk. I stopped riding my motorcycle so that must count for something.

[KayakDoc]

I know I am jumping the gun here, especially with the November ISAF meeting still to come, but I believe that the safety/training/access issues being discussed have been addressed and the IOC and ISAF decision makers have been satisfied.

There is the possibility that ISAF will set aside their decision, but this action will open up a big fresh can of worms. The meeting in November will likely include the discussion of whether the decision should be revisited. I suspect that the decision to set aside will not be discussed at the meeting in November, only the possibility of a future discussion/vote. ISAF has rules for this and so far the RSX community has not adhered to these rules. Also it would be good to remember that we are dealing with Sailing Federation bureaucrats here with the IOC breathing down their necks. Reversing this decision is not going to be easy planning, but more an Apollonian task of kelp laden slogging out to the wind line. I could be wrong, but if I were to consult the Oracle at Delphi I suspect the girls would be leaning in my direction, plus what the hell, it’s fun to speculate.

Personally I think this ship has sailed and Kite Racing is slated for the 2016 Olympics, but I have this niggling doubt, that like a drunken prom date, Kite Racing may not actually show up for the Big Dance and this is the big ticket item that is subvertivly under discussion.

Kite Racing is out of the box and it will not get stuffed back in. Kite Racing is too much fun and the only thing that might displace it is Kiting 3.0, whatever that is. The primary reasons ISAF wants control of Kiting is because Kiting has kicked the bejesus out of sailings holy grails, without really trying, plus the IOC sees a poster child for its ideology and sailing is where the IOC deems Kite Racing should be slotted. Conversely, the Kite Racers I know that are going to the Worlds in Sardinia are excited, but not nearly as excited as their attendance at the Speed Trials in the Eastern US a week or so later.

In speaking with the best Kite Racers and Gear Designers at this point the consensus is that if any entity screws with the fledgling money circuit (i.e., replacing IKA with the ISAF Olympic Class World Cup without including prize money), restricts kite gear designs beyond the box rule and tries to exert excessive control, the Kiting World will continue on its present path of inadvertently ripping up sailing records, developing much better kite gear and continue with a race circuit that pays the bills.

I especially like JL’s measured comments about what could happen, at least at the local level, plus I truly feel that the Windsurf/Kite community on Vancouver Island is a wonderful group of unbiased support unlike many other places I have kited, but at the International Level I liken Windsurfing to a wizened parent and Kite Racing to a normally sullen teenager where the parent may no longer have control of the basement dwelling noise maker and as Kiting leaps forward into the future Windsurfing can only hope that it’s pimply faced offspring won’t make the same mistakes. Knowing a little bit about genetics I doubt it, but like watching a really good kite crash it is hard to look away.

[thankgodiatepastafobreaky]

Hey Doc, I hope your niggling doubt is right and we can just race a cross-wind border cross instead. I want to be strapless!!

[JL]

& free style , like winter skiing

[KayakDoc]

Pasta and JL: Best be careful what you ask for. We might just get it. http://www.iksurfmag.com/kitesurfing-ne ... -kicks-in/