Hi Folks -

By now, some of you may have heard that the US SAILING Board of Directors approved an Olympic Sailing Committee submission to ISAF that did not include the Tornado as one of the proposed classes for the 2012 Olympic Games. I spent yesterday getting familiar with the process and the politics involved in the long road to select equipment for a Games. This is very early in the process, and the submission made only eight recommendations (six dinghies and two keelboats) with the expectation that an additional two classes would be selected by the Council. Despite this, the exclusion of a multihull from the list is at least troubling...

Before anyone takes aim at the Board of Directors, keep in mind that the Board depends upon the Olympic Sailing Committee to look into these matters and make recommendations that are well thought out and reasoned. Their approval of the OSC's submission was simply a point of order. It is generally well understood, however, that if US SAILING's rep stands up in the Event Committee meeting in Paris this May and the Tornado is not on the list of recommended equipment for the 2012 Games, then multihulls are in serious jeopardy.

The situation is developing quickly since this issue became public yesterday. At a minimum, our current course of action is to stand before the Board this week in Newport and move that the submission be amended to include a multihull class in the recommended equipment. How the Board and the OSC handles this motion will be very telling. In the days leading up to that moment, the alarm bells are ringing and we are talking with those we feel are in a position to both understand the seriousness of the situation and are in a position to vote in favor of the motion. I'll have more info for you soon.

John Williams
Multihull Council Chair
US SAILING