Olympics preview- 49er

by Bob Ross on 15 Aug 2004 Competition in the 49er skiff class begins on Monday August 16 with the Australian pair Chris Nicholson and Gary Boyd strongly respected by their opponents.

Nicholson, disappointed with his sixth place in Sydney 2000, took a break from 49er sailing to sail around the world in the Volvo race. An initial partnership in the 49er with Laser bronze medallist Michael Blackburn, did not work out, so Nicholson teamed with Gary Boyd, who sailed four seasons with him in 18ft skiffs before he and twin brother John mounted an Olympic campaign in 49ers towards selection in 2000.

They seem to be a great team. Gary Boyd says: ‘I have come into it in stages. All the preliminary work I was used to after trying for 2000. The 12 months from being selected to how to manage it all is all new.

‘We get along pretty well. Every time we hit the water we have fun. We did four years in the 18s together and a lot of racing against each other as training partners coming into Sydney, so we have good familiarity with each other.’

Boyd had to lose weight to sail a 49er after crewing with John on an Australian championship winning 16ft campaign. ‘All those schooners after the 16-footer race,’ he explains.

He has trimmed down to 79kg and with Chris 74kg; they are still a bit heavy for the 49er. Both have been very mindful of conditioning and fitness to resist the risk of injury in 49er sailing.

A joint training program between the Australians and the red-hot Spanish team of Iker Martinez and Xavier Fernandez in Australia and Spain was disrupted when Martinez suffered a knee injury that forced the Spaniards to withdraw from the Sail Melbourne regatta in January.

Lack of wind hampered the training program in Spain.

Martinez/Fernandez bounced back to convincingly win the world championship at Athens while Nicholson/Boyd struggled into 13th place. Nicholson’s confidence was badly dented. ‘Before the worlds, we were neck and neck with the Spaniards for speed. Tactically we were let down.’

But in their most recent spell in Europe, they have been consistent and never out of a top seven placing. They finished third at the last regatta before the Olympics, the European championship on Lake Garda, behind Chris Draper/Simon Hiscocks (Great Britain) and Michael Hestbaek/Dennis Andersen (Denmark).

The Spaniards are firm favourites for a medal, rarely out of a top three placing in recent regattas, providing they remain injury free.

The British silver medallist crew at Sydney 2000, Simon Hiscocks is teamed with a new skipper, Chris Draper. They clinched selection by winning the ISAF world championship with a race to spare.

The Sydney 2000 gold medalist Thomas Johansen (Finland) freshly teamed with Jukka Piirainen, finished eighth at the European championship.

Marcus Baur (Germany), sixth in Sydney is now teamed with Max Groy. They finished third in the 2004 world championship and won the Athens 2004 Eurolymp.

Brothers Pietro and Gianfranco Sibello (Italy) have recently shown they are right on the pace with wins in Hyeres Week and Kiel Week.

Americans Tim Wardlow and Pete Spaulding have scored top five placings in all events they have contested this year.

It will not be lonely near the head of the 49er fleet.