Yes it's early to be discussing equipment, but we like to! I don't understand the underlying objection to development classes in Olympic sailing - aren't there many 'development classes' in the other sports? Special suits for swimmers, carbon bicycles, etc? So surely the 'one design' issue should apply across the board. Either allow it in all classes to determine the epitome of human development, or disallow it to find the greatest atheletes.
While I don't necessarily disagree with your sentiment, the truth is that there is a distinct line in the Olympics between the athlete and the equipment. Yes, the equipment plays a role but there is a certain lack of visible difference that is important to the Olympics. I have no doubt there are significant differences between bicycles, skates of speed skaters, swimsuits of swimmers, and shoes of sprinters but I can't tell them apart on television.
Show me 20 boats racing up to A-mark and four of them have huge screechers flying and the rest do not - anyone can see that difference. As a whole, the Olympics (or at least the visual) is supposed to be about the athlete.
