Hot News 19 / 03 / 2010

Scottish Sailing is now working as the agent for North Sails. We will be working with many sailors and classes to maximise on the water potential.

‘We are really looking forward to working with Duncan who will give additional support to the Scottish market place. North Sails continue to push the design boundaries all the way from the Americas Cup to the Olympic classes, National classes all the way to the highly competitive Optimist.’  Rob Wilson North Sails

Through time we will be adding many new products and information downloads to the site to aid with your sailing. In the immediate future if you have any questions please contact Duncan via email or phone for assistance.

Sailors celebrated in New Year’s Honours

Britain’s history-making sailors have had their astonishing feats in 2008 recognised in the New Year’s Honours List.

All Britain’s gold medal winning sailors at Beijing 2008 have been honoured along with RYA Olympic Manager Stephen Park.

Finn class star Ben Ainslie heads the honours being appointed a CBE after winning his third successive Olympic gold medal in China – his fourth Olympic medal in total having claimed Laser class silver at Atlanta 1996.

This year also saw the 31-year-old from Lymington take a record-breaking fifth Finn Gold Cup crown and he was named ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year for an unprecedented third time. He remains unbeaten in the Finn class since 2004.

Sarah Ayton and Sarah Webb, who struck gold for the second Games running in the Yngling class, receive OBEs having picked up MBEs following their success with Shirley Robertson at Athens 2004. Meanwhile the third member of the celebrated Yngling trio, Pippa Wilson, is awarded an MBE as the girls ended 2008 as Olympic, World and European champions.

Iain Percy also picks up an OBE after winning his second Olympic gold in the Star class with Andrew Simpson in China, Percy first tasting Olympic glory in the Finn at Sydney 2000. Simpson, like Pippa Wilson an Olympic debutant at the Beijing Games, receives an MBE.

Paul Goodison, who triumphed in emphatic style in the Laser class in Qingdao – four years after suffering the agonising heartbreak of Olympic Games fourth – caps an unforgettable year, in which he also won his fourth European Championship, with his first honour, an MBE.

Meanwhile, Park, who was at the team management helm for the second successive Games, has also been honoured for the first time, the 40-year-old Scot being awarded an OBE. Park oversaw Britain’s most successful ever Olympic sailing campaign in China with the sailors winning six medals in total – four golds, one silver and one bronze.

Largo Bay Sailing Club – Spring Series

Friday 2nd January. First gun 11.30hrs – briefing 11.00hrs. 3 races - £5 for all. Contact Alasdair Sneddon 01333 320222 alasdair.sneddon@virgin.net. www.largobaysc.org.uk

Royal Forth Yacht Club Spring Series

Spring Series for Dinghies – April 29/30 May first start 1900hrs. www.rycf.org.uk , 0131 552 8560

Ainslie in running for BBC Sports Personality of the Year

He has already become Britain’s most successful ever Olympic sailor and been named ISAF Male World Sailor of the Year.

Now you can help Ben Ainslie bring the curtain down on his history-making 2008 in perfect style by voting for him to be named the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Ainslie, who claimed his third consecutive gold and fourth Olympic medal in total with emphatic Finn class victory at Beijing 2008, was last night revealed as being on the final shortlist of 10 in the running for this year’s award.

No sailor has ever received the prestigious BBC accolade, awarded annually since 1954.

But in a year that has seen Ainslie catapulted from true sailing great to genuine British sporting hero, the award would be fitting recognition of his decade-long domination of his sport.

The 2008 BBC Sports Personality of the Year takes place at the Liverpool Echo Arena on Sunday, 14 December and voting will take place by phone only during the live show. The number to call to vote for Ainslie will be revealed on the programme after 7pm, so make sure you tune in on the night!

There is no voting via the BBC Sport website or by text – calls on the night will cost 15p from a BT landline. Calls from mobile phones and other networks will cost more.

Photo: Richard Langdon/Skandia Team GBR

Ainslie named World Sailor of the Year

Triple Olympic gold medallist Ben Ainslie has made history once again by becoming the first sailor ever to be awarded the ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Award three times.

The 31-year-old Finn star received his award last night (11 November) at a glittering ceremony at the Quinta de Jarama, Madrid, with Italy’s veteran Olympic windsurfer Alessandra Sensini named as the female world sailor of the year after clinching her fourth straight Olympic medal in China this summer.

The Skandia Team GBR trio of Sarah Ayton, Sarah Webb and Pippa Wilson were in the running for the female award after their dominant display in the Yngling class over the past year in which they won the World and European titles before claiming Olympic gold for Team GB in Beijing.

Great Britain’s World Match Racing Champion Ian Williams was also shortlisted for the men’s prize.

Five male and five female crews were shortlisted for the ISAF Rolex World Sail of the Year award – Ainslie was up against record-breaking round-the-world sailor Francis Joyon (FRA), Olympic gold medal-winning windsurfer Tom Ashley (NZL), and Farr40 world and European Champion Vincenzo Onorato (ITA) as well as Williams (GBR).

Alessandra Sensini won the award over Ayton, Webb and Wilson, 470 Olympic Champions Elise Rechichi and Tessa Parkinson (AUS), match racing World Champion Claire Leroy of France and Laser Radial Olympic Champion Anna Tunnicliffe (USA).

Victory for Swede but Brits book Series Finals spots

Viktor Ogeman made the most of some frustrating conditions as the young Swede won the fourth and final RYA National Match Racing Series qualifier at Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA) this weekend (4-5 October).

With limited racing completed over the two days as heavy winds and torrential rain swept through Portland Harbour and Weymouth Bay, 20-year-old Ogeman clinched six race wins out of seven to win the qualifier with an 85% success rate.

Britain’s Matt Greenfield was second with five out of six wins (83%) while defending and two-time RYA National Match Racing champion Nick Cherry finished third with three wins out of four (75%).

2007-08 Volvo RYA Keelboat Squad sailor Greenfield, 23, now progresses through to the RYA National Match Racing Series Grand Final at WPNSA on 10-12 October as Ogeman’s Swedish team are not eligible to contest the National title.

Cherry will also be invited to defend the title he has won for the past two years at the three-day Finals showdown, which gets underway on Friday.

Ogeman beat both Greenfield and Cherry during this weekend’s event but the two Brits did not go head-to-head themselves. Crawley-born Greenfield was seventh overall at last year’s Series Final.

RYA National Ranking Series set for exciting finale

Hannah Mills and Katrina Hughes are poised to end their season on a high with the 2008 RYA Olympic Classes National Ranking Series 470 women’s crown.

Mills and Hughes, who this summer claimed the World Junior 470 title and followed that up with silver at the European Juniors, enjoyed a three-race clean sweep at this weekend’s National Ranker, the second of the three-event Series, to sit in pole position in the women’s double-handed dinghy class.

The young Skandia Team GBR duo travelled to Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA) with their noses already in front in the 470 Women’s class having finished fifth overall, and the top British pair, at the first National Ranker staged concurrently with the Skandia Sail for Gold Regatta last month.

And their success this weekend, winning all three of Sunday’s races after Saturday’s schedule was canned due to heavy winds, consolidated their lead going into the third and final event at WPNSA on 18-19 October, when the overall 2008 RYA Olympic Classes National Ranking Series winners will be decided.

Ali Masters also sits in a strong position to claim the RS:X 8.5 title (for women and Youth sailors) having romped to three straight bullets on Sunday. The 16-year-old Masters’ top Brit finish at Sail for Gold combined with his latest event victory makes him hot favourite for the 8.5 National Ranking Series crown.

Also claiming three straight wins this weekend was Andrew Mills in the Finn, setting up a tense showdown with Giles Scott for the National Ranker class title in a fortnight.

With Scott having edged an advantage at Sail for Gold, winning the regatta with Mills in second, the tables were turned in round two with World Under 21 champion Scott settling for second spot behind his Skandia Team GBR teammate putting them neck and neck going into the Series decider.

Paul Campbell-James and Mark Asquith were also triple winners in the 49er class at WPNSA, winning Ranker 2 from Dylan Fletcher and Alain Sign with Dave Evans and Simon Hiscocks in third.

Richard Hamilton finished at the head of the RS:X 9.5 fleet courtesy of two races wins and a second with Elliott Carney trailing just a point behind.

Meanwhile, James Rusden and Daniel Schieber also won the 470 Men’s event by a sole point from Chris Grube and Luke Patience, Rusden and Schieber claiming two seconds and a first to Grube and Patience’s two bullets and a fourth.

The RYA National Ranking Series is designed to provide opportunities for aspiring Olympians and all UK Olympic Classes sailors to race against world class performers.

Scottish Sailing August Newsletter - Olympic Special

With such a huge success at the Beijing Olympics now is the perfect time to take your sailing to the next level (maybe even in preparation for London 2012!)

As the curtain comes down on a highly successful Games for Team GB it is a chance to reflect particularly on the successes of the sailing contingent. Britain topped the sailing medal table with four golds, a silver and a bronze above Australia and Spain in second and third respectively.

Ben Ainslie won his third gold medal in the Finn Class, hailed by Olympics chief Jacques Rogge as the equal of Michael Phelps or Usain Bolt's heroics. Ainslie launched the Ben Ainslie Junior Marine Range prior to the Olympics, why not check out these fantastic Henri Lloyd products at ScottishSailing.com.

R. Young from Argyll is the lucky winner of the Scottish Sailing Ben Ainslie Competition and receives the fantastic Henri Lloyd Ben Ainslie Shore Jacket. Congratulations!!

The Yngling Girls, Sarah Ayton, Sarah Webb and Pippa Wilson kept ahead of their Dutch rivals to take Gold in their class. The final day of racing saw the Yngling crews take to the water in rough conditions. The Yngling Girls wore Queensport Hikers throughout their Olympic campaign (as did Ben Ainslie) so why not see the advantages these excellent hikers have on the water. Scottish Sailing is the sole UK importer of Queensport and is happy to help advise on any product queries you might have.

Paul Goodison won Britain’s 13th Gold of the Games in sailing's laser class. Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson won Britain's fourth sailing gold the Star class event in Qingdao. In a thrilling climax to the event Percy and Simpson who started the medal race in second place beat Sweden at the finish line. Check out our shop for all the accessories and clothing that will set you on course for y