Update
Scallywag approaches her home port of Hong Kong to win the fourth leg of the Volvo Race and finally begin to trouble the scorers. This is the same piece of water in which Vestas suffered their fatal collision with a fishing boat – with visibility confused against the very heavily illuminated backdrop. Probably not the smartest place to have a night-time finish for a yacht race, but hindsight is easy
as I wasn’t onboard, I felt I could look at it a little more objectively – but at the same time be respectful of what they had just been through. There isn’t a script for dealing with something like this, so we left it up to the individuals to do what they felt was best for them. SH: The general emotion in the team… CE: Shock for sure, and certainly exhaustion. Then once it was confirmed the fisherman had passed, sympathy for him, his family, friends and everyone involved. SH: We live in a world now where news and information are shared very quickly. For reasons of procedure and the impending investigation information could not be released by the team. How frustrating was that? CE:We were very conscious not to issue misinformation, which is the worst sort of information you can have. The fact remains that there is still a lot of uncertainty surrounding the situation. Obviously I know people were voicing frustration that there weren’t answers, but those answers weren’t conveyed because they still hadn’t been figured out. SH: What can you say of the support you’ve had? CE: We have received unconditional support from all our stake - holders, our sponsors Vestas and 11th Hour Racing, plus our hand- ful of private investors. The race organisation have been nothing short of amazing, not only with their help in Hong Kong but the repair, reconstruction and transport process – they never wavered throughout. All the other teams know just how challenging it is to do what we did to get back to the starting line and have been equally supportive. Now it’s time to focus on the rest of the race… Charlie Enright was talking to Blue Robinson
GLASS HALF FULL – Malcolm Page Thirteen months into his job as chief of US Olympic Sailing and just through a single-medal Miami World Cup, Malcolm Page’s glass is still more than half full: ‘I would say my initial thoughts and the gameplan are unchanged. But now I’ve had a dose of reality.’ When reminded of his comment six months ago (issue 452: ‘At
14 SEAHORSE
times I feel overwhelmed; at other times I panic!’) he barks out the same laugh that followed the original statement. ‘Did I say that? I’m normally pretty honest.’ Then his smile fades a little. ‘The one thing I have learnt already this year is that it’s going to take a lot longer than I thought.’ Returning the US Sailing Team to consistent medal production will take more than one short year, even for a leader with Page’s determination and personal track record. He’s old enough to remember when Team USA set the standard
– ‘in all sailing, not just the Olympics!’ The downhill slide in US medals, from its summit in 1992 (nine medals out of 10) to zero in 2012, took two decades longer than a luge run, so the climb back up won’t be as quick as the US squads would like. For a double gold medallist who likes to see hard work instantly translate into results, that reality can be a little frustrating. I spoke to Page just after the 2018 Miami World Cup, and he
admitted to being a little disappointed with the US team’s results at their home regatta. Again 2016 bronze medallist Caleb Paine won the USA’s sole medal – silver this time. Two other experienced teams didn’t compete with their regular crews due to injury. ‘When I deep-dive into each result,’ he says, ‘it’s actually where they [the athletes] are. They’re fair results. But I’m disappointed because I want more.’ Paige Railey, a two-time Olympian and 2006 Laser Radial World
Champion, returned to sailing a few weeks before Miami and finished 13th. ‘I think Paige went really well for a first regatta back and still being underweight,’ Page says. ‘It was a good first step back into that world.’ Railey has nice things to say about him too. ‘It is easy to push too hard, which achieves mediocre results. Malcolm knows when to pull back. It’s a rare leadership quality.’
Unfinished business Railey’s time off perhaps gives her more perspective than other veterans, who tell their leader they’ve heard it all before. ‘And they probably have,’ Page says. The 2018 team is a mix of experience and fresh faces. ‘The new athletes say, ah that’s great, let’s do it… Hopefully we meet somewhere in the middle, because that’s how we’re going to shift and evolve.’
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JAMES TOMLINSON
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