Can you tell us about the skills required for the 470 that are not required by the 49er or other classes? (I haven't sailed either).

Do you consider that the skills required to sail a 470 are sufficiently distinctive and worth competing on that they make it less important to have a competition that tests the skills involved in sailing a catamaran? If a cat sailor wanted to go to the Olympics and there was no Olympic multihull, what class would you suggest they aim for? The 49er?