Thoughts on the Rio test event—Sailing news from the U.S. and beyond

by David Schmidt, Sail-World USA Editor on 27 Aug 2015 When it comes to next summer’s Rio 2016 Olympics, there’s good news and there’s bad news. The good news is that US Sailing Team Sperry is currently sailing much faster than anyone had previously hoped, as evidenced by last week’s Aquece Rio International Sailing Regatta 2015 (August 15-22; AKA, the Rio test event), where Annie Haeger and Briana Provancha captured Gold in the Women’s 470 class, and where several other sailors and teams cracked the Top Ten. The bad news, of course, is that, based on recent reportage from both mainstream and sailing-specific media, Rio’s water-quality situation could be far worse than anyone feared.

Back to the good news. In addition to Haeger and Provancha’s proud Gold, Paige Railey finished fourth in the Laser Radials (after suffering a DNF in her final race), Stuart McNay and David Hughes finished seventh in the Men’s 470 (having been in striking distance of a podium finish for most of the regatta), and Charlie Buckingham also finished in seventh place in the Men’s Laser, while Lee Parkhill (CAN) finished in fifth in this hyper-competitive class.

For many fans of U.S. Olympic sailing, these results were far better than we had been bracing for, given the dismal results that the team racked up at the London 2012 Olympics. And while it would be premature to call this a market rally for U.S.-flagged medal dreams, there’s no question that the countless hours of training, preparation and time spent studying Rio’s tricky winds and currents have paid dividends, at least at the Rio test event.

Now about that bad news. The Associated Press cracked the story of Rio’s painfully polluted waters wide open this summer with an in-depth investigation into the levels of viruses and bacteria that are found on next summer’s Olympic and Paralympic racecourses, compliments of untreated sewage that’s pumped directly into Guanabara Bay from Rio’s many surrounding favelas.

At least one sailor (Korean RS:X sailor Wonwoo Cho) had to be hospitalized with symptoms consistent with having ingested sewage-tainted waters, and reports suggest that up to three other teams (or individuals) were also affected. (And while Wonwoo Cho finished the regatta, his result of 23 out of 28 would likely have been improved had he not been hospitalized mid-regatta.)

While it’s important to remember that these are fairly low incidence numbers, considering the hundreds of athletes who were participating in the Aquece Rio International Sailing Regatta 2015, the fundamental question remains: Can the XXXI Olympiad offer a fair and level racecourse when sailors have to be concerned with staying healthy, in addition to staying fast and fit?

It’s also important to note that it only rained once during the Aquece Rio International Sailing Regatta 2015. This is relevant because rainfall flushes rivers and inlets into Guanabara Bay, potentially spiking virus and bacteria counts and putting sailors (and other athletes) in greater jeopardy. Racing had to be cancelled for two days on one inside racecourse during the event due to floating “objects” in Guanabara Bay…but what happens if it rains during next summer’s two-week-long Olympic regatta?

Reports have also emerged of different national teams adopting homespun remedies for combating the tainted waters, including drinking Coke and whiskey to kill any accidentally ingested Guanabara Bay water, but the whole situation begs some hard questions. Fortunately, ISAF now seems to be asking these questions rather loudly.

“If we can’t get the water to a level, then we’ll move it outside (to the Atlantic Ocean)—for sure,” Peter Sowrey, ISAF’s CEO, told The Associated Press on August 22.

While this bodes well for sailors, press and other people who could be directly affected by Rio’s filthy water, there’s no question that a move of this nature would be an utter embarrassment to the Brazilian government, and would certainly render some of the pre-Olympic venue-specific research and training work (conducted by individual teams, including US Sailing Team Sperry) useless.

So while fans of North American Olympic sailing can celebrate the fact that our teams are performing at higher levels than expected, the baseline water-quality problems remain an issue. And while ISAF, Olympic officials and mainstream media are now aware of the situation, it remains to be seen what will be done to ensure both racecourse fairness and athlete health during next summer’s Olympics.

Stay tuned!

Also inside this issue, be sure to get the latest downloads from the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series Gothenburg event (August 29-30), the Melges 32 Worlds (August 26-30), and the Pringles Kitesurf World Cup (August 21-30).

May the four winds blow you safely home,