That Other Problem Child
2012 Olympic Events is sailing's other problem child, and ISAF will have the chance to right its wrongs of last November at the Mid Year meeting in May.

We have talked before of the sleight of hand that appears to be embedded in the Agenda's for the meeting - with submissions being categorised as non-Urgent, but one from the Executive Committee on the same topic gets a self-pat on its 'Urgent' head, and will be considered.

Those against any change from November will pay the old game of divide and rule to get their way in the votes.

The way around this is for there to be a unified position the FFV (FRA) submission for the Five Disciplines as the backbone of the Olympic Events is one to which everyone can probably subscribe.

This would mean that the Womens Events would consist of Keelboat, Singlehanded Monohull, Two-handed Monohull and Windsurfer. The Mens Events would comprise the above plus Multihull (probably as an Open Event), with the option to decide which Discipline will have the second event, to create six Events from Five Disciplines. Next decision is which classes should be the equipment for the Events - with plenty of room for creative options if this is required.

Under the French submission, an event eg Womens Keelboat can still be Match or Fleet racing. Maybe there is also room for Teams Racing in one of the Events given the backbone of the Five Disciplines.

The gains are that the Five Disciplines set a strategy for ISAF in that all major sailing disciplines are represented at the Olympics; it gives some symmetry to the sport outside the Olympics ie is compatible with the events at the ISAF Youth.

Five Disciplines also means that sailors can plan for development beyond a four year Olympic cycle as it is relatively easy to switch between classes within a discipline, but a lot less easy to switch between disciplines.

If the 2012 Events issue is to be progressed then there has to be some commonality in thinking, and the Five Disciplines approach is very hard to argue against. By not adopting it as a principle, one is by definition subscribing to the exclusion of one discipline of the sport from the Olympics for the sake of another being over-represented. -- Richard Gladwell, see more on the 'non-urgent' submissions on Sail-World: www.sail-world.com