Pressure on Sydney selectors after tight finishes
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Your support makes all the difference.After the competition had reached boiling point on the water here yesterday, the heat moved on to the selectors last night to decide whether to rely on the results of the Chernikeeff Olympic trials or call for further racing before nominating Britain's representatives in the 470 and 49er classes in Sydney in September.
As expected, the racing went right down to the wire, the 49er win going to the former world 505 champion Ian Barker and Simon Hiscocks by a single point over Paul Brotherton and Mo Gray in the last event of 16.
In the 470, where Britain won silver through the late John Merricks and Ian Walker in 1996, Chris Draper and Dan Newman similarly pipped the favourites Nick Rogers and Jo Glanfield.
Life was much more simple in the Soling course, where Andy Beadsworth, Richard Sydenham and Barry Parkin beat Ian Williams, Mark Nicholls and Andy Hemmings 5-1 in their best of nine. Beadsworth had lost only that one race in the whole regatta on his way to his second Games.
Parkin's wife, Sue, who partnered Helena Lucas to victory in the women's 470, will have to wait until next month's World Championships in Hungary to see if she can join her husband for her fourth consecutive Games.
The Royal Yachting Association's Olympic manager, John Derbyshire, is due to submit the nominees to Simon Clegg, Team GB's chef de mission, overnight for ratification which is expected at mid-morning today.
As part of a bid to find the Olympic sailors of 2008 and 2012, the Royal Yachting Association yesterday announced that the present youth programme sponsored by Volvo is to be given a £1m-a-year boost for the next four years by Sport England.
This is the first sport to be given such funding and it will be employed to develop theregional talent squads managed by six newly appointed managers.
The money will also be used to support over 250 of the best young sailors up to the age of about 14 or 15 to take part in major competitions, including at international level, and receive individual coaching.
The scheme will be operated through a partnership with 122 clubs which have already been identified. Steve Joel, the man brought in from the Sports Council to administer the scheme nationally, said he hoped to double the number of participating clubs over the next year.
CHERNIKEEFF OLYMPIC TRIALS (Weymouth): 49er class (after 16 races, 2 discards): 1 I Barker and S Hiscocks 33pts; 2 P Brotherton and M Gray 34; 3 T Robinson and Z Elliot 44. 470 (11, 2): 1 C Draper and Dan Newman 19; 2 N Rogers and J Glanfield 20; 3 G Vials and M Leask 27.
Mistral men (11, 2): 1 N Dempsey 12; 2 D Tidey 18; 3 A Jones 19. Mistral women (11, 2): 1 C Johnston 7; 2 H Cartwright 94; 3 J Ash 179. Finn class (11, 2): 1 I Percy 9; 2 J Lea 26; 3 A Simpson 37. Tornado class (11, 2): 1 H Styles and A May 15; 2 R Wilson and W Howden 17; 3 T Reid and T Hewitt 29. Soling Match Racing: A Beadsworth, R Sydenham and B Parkin (United Airlines) bt I Williams, M Nicholls and A Hemmings (South West RDA) 5-1.
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