Thursday, December 01, 2011
Excitement and tension builds in the final days leading into Perth 2011! Outside of the Olympic Games, this is one of the most significant events in the sailing calendar over a four year period. With all ten Olympic classes competing at the same venue, this provides for an outstanding show case of sailing talent. 75% of the Olympic berths will be decided at this event putting a premium on performance. For the Canadian contingent it holds even further significance as it marks the opening to their Olympic trials. The Olympic Dream may become a reality for some hopefuls as a top 10 finish in Perth qualifies a competitor to represent Canada at the Games. Furthermore, for the Laser/Radial classes, if a top ten is not achieved, the scores are carried over to the final trial stage at Miami OCR. CYA’s High Performance Director, Ken Dool, elaborates, “this pressure packed atmosphere will make the Canadian performances at this event all the more exciting to follow.”
Perth/Fremantle is well known for its’ windy conditions thus providing an excellent backdrop to the Olympic qualification process. “If the training period is any indication, the sailors are in for some exciting days with a variety of conditions and some big breeze days”.
The ‘Canuck’ presence will certainly be felt in Perth as the 3rd largest contingents of the 78 nations in attendance. Host country Australia leads the entry charge followed by Olympic hosts GBR. Here is a full entry list of our Canadians representatives:
|
Canadian Sailor
|
Class
|
|
R Clarke/ T Bjorn
|
Star team
|
|
S Hebb/M Wolfs
|
Star team
|
|
Dave Wright
|
Laser
|
|
Lee Parkhill
|
Laser
|
|
Chris Dold
|
Laser
|
|
Tom Ramshaw
|
Laser
|
|
Isabella Bertold
|
Radial
|
|
Claire Merry
|
Radial
|
|
Ingrid Merry
|
Radial
|
|
Lisa Ross
|
Radial
|
|
Danielle Dube
|
Radial
|
|
Brenda Bowskill
|
Radial
|
|
Erin Rafuse
|
Radial
|
|
Greg Douglas
|
Finn
|
|
Martin Robitaille
|
Finn
|
|
Brendan Wilton
|
Finn
|
|
Chris Cook
|
Finn
|
|
Nikola Girke
|
RSX W
|
|
Dominique Vallee
|
RSX W
|
|
Zac Plavsic
|
RSX M
|
|
David Hayes
|
RSX M
|
|
G Cook/H Lowden
|
49er team
|
|
B Gooderham/I Hogan
|
49er team
|
|
J Ladha/D Inkpen
|
49er team
|
|
M Dubreucq/T Parekh
|
49er team
|
|
R Frost/T Arbuckle
|
49er team
|
|
D Archibald/K Dexter
|
470 W team
|
|
L Ramsay/M Leigh
|
470 M team
|
|
Ferris/Prokop/Sijpestein
|
Match Racing
|
|
Gordon/Taylor/Simons
|
Match Racing
|
The support team consists of 13 coaches and various integrated support staff.
Registration starts on December 3rd.
Racing schedule:
RSX W, Radial, Finn, 470 M – 5-11 December
RSX M, Laser, 470 W, & 49er – 12-18 December
Star: 11-17 December
Women’s Match Racing – 3-16 December
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Official event site: http://www.perth2011.com/
More than 25 international and national broadcasters have signed up to take the television coverage of Perth 2011. Viewers will also be able to watch live coverage of all ten Medal Races as well as daily highlights on the Perth 2011 website and www.sailing.org/TV
Follow the success of the Canadian Sailing Team:
