NZL Sailing Team arrive in Rio for Olympic Test Event

by Jodie Bakewell-White on 24 Jul 2014 In early August the NZL Sailing Team will be competing at one of this year’s most significant events on the journey towards the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

Officially titled Aquece Rio – International Sailing Regatta 2014, the August regatta is a ‘Test Event’ for the 2016 Rio Olympic Sailing Regatta. On between 2 and 9 August all ten Olympic classes will be based at Marina da Glória for racing inside and outside the Guanabara Bay, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

For the NZL Sailing Team next month’s event will provide a valuable opportunity. High Performance Director Jez Fanstone explains; 'A key goal for us is to gain knowledge about Rio. We want to be as familiar with the 2016 Olympic sailing venue as possible.'

'This year we will use the Rio Test Event, which is the first of all 2016 Olympic Test Events, to build on all aspects of our knowledge around Guanabara Bay, Rio.'

This year each nation is permitted two entries per class, but come 2016 this will be reduced to one per class for nations that have qualified.

The event: Aqueece Rio – International Sailing Regatta 2014
Otherwise known as: Rio Test Event 2014
Dates: 2-9 August 2014

The numbers

34 countries
320 athletes
250 boats

The New Zealand Team

Peter Burling and Blair Tuke – 49er
Marcus Hansen and Josh Porebski – 49er
Alexandra Maloney and Molly Meech – 49erFX
Andy Maloney – Laser
Sam Meech – Laser
Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie – Women’s 470
Paul Snow-Hansen and Daniel Willcox – Men’s 470
Josh Junior – Finn
Andrew Murdoch – Finn
Natalia Kosinska – Women’s RS:X
Sara Winther – Laser Radial
Gemma Jones and Jason Saunders – Nacra 17

Support and coaching:

Jez Fanstone, Mark Howard, Nathan Handley, Simon Briscoe and Hamish Willcox, Craig Panther, David Slyfield, Louise Johnson, Christel Dunshea- Mooij

 The Racing Schedule

Event	Racing dates	Number of scheduled races
Women’s RS:X (windsurfer)	3-7 August	12 + Medal Race
Laser (Men’s one person dinghy)	4-9 August	10 + Medal Race
Laser Radial (Women’s one person dinghy)	4-9 August	10 + Medal Race
Finn (Men’s one person heavy-weight dinghy)	3-8 August	10 + Medal Race
Men’s 470 (Two person dinghy)	4-9 August	10 + Medal Race
Women’s 470 (Two person dinghy)	4-9 August	10 + Medal Race
49er (Men’s skiff)	4-8 August	12 + Medal Race
49erFX (Women’s skiff)	4-8 August	12 + Medal Race
Nacra17 (Mixed multihull)	4-8 August	12 + Medal Race

Links

Regatta website
NZL Sailing Team Sailor profiles
NZL Sailing Team on Facebook

About the NZL Sailing Team

The NZL Sailing Team includes New Zealand’s top Olympic campaigners who have made the top 20% in their most recent (respective) class World Championships or pinnacle event and have shown consistency of performance over the year including other significant Championships.

Yachting New Zealand’s High Performance Programme is focussed on winning medals at the Olympics in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.

NZL Sailing Team sailors all started out at grass roots yacht clubs around the country and with commitment, dedication and drive have risen to be world class athletes; they work hard in the gym, train long hours on the water and are supported by great coaches.