WR:Sime (Fantela) and Egor (Marenic), the gold medallists, moved into the 49er and are doing really well. That’s actually great for us as you don’t often see that type of transition happening out of the 470. But apart from that most of the Rio teams are pushing for Japan. It is hard for me to say if the level is higher or lower, but it is certainly different as crews evolve. SH: And refinements in equipment? WR: I feel sometimes we are revolutionising the sport, but really it is the same round wheel we are refining and rolling forwards. The changes are pretty subtle and wouldn’t stand out as making a difference. We still have white sails and silver masts but we can tailor that package to our size and that makes it interesting. All this means teams are studying conditions and tides more scientifically and pushing harder with their analytical tools; the smaller teams are also banging corners harder to try to beat the top crews. SH: You do a lot of training with the Japanese 470 crews… WR: Victor had a strong connection with the Japanese sailors he met at events in the 1980s, and Mat and I are lucky to sail against two or three key guys – plus their support is obviously ramping up with a home Games getting closer. They also have a great college programme in Japan so in most classes they will be fast next year. SH: Rio was relatively straightforward logistically for the European teams, but a challenging Games for the Australians. Are the tables turned, with Tokyo being an advantage for you and Mat, living in a close time zone to Japan? WR: For sure the time zone is way easier for us to deal with, being 12 hours from us as opposed to a 30-hour marathon flight to Rio. For the Europeans it is still a relatively short flight – 12 hours over the Pole – but the time zone difference is tougher for them. SH: And the venue? WR: We have sailed in Enoshima a few times but unfortunately I don’t think any of us have sailed there yet during the Games period, largely due to those dates clashing with the Aarhus Worlds. Japan has a narrow summer, so this year will be a big learning exercise to discover what to expect next year. When we were there we had a mix of conditions: great sea breeze days with big ocean swells and warm water, and then you have a switch when it comes off the land. Quite tricky – not quite a westerly in Sydney, but the same approach with eyes really out of the boat and flatter water. My hope is we get a mix of both, to allow the most rounded athletes the chance to win. SH: What is it like working with Victor, for those who don’t know him. And what would he bring to someone like Marcus Blackmore and his TP52 team? WR:Good question and a lot of people ask it. They all want to know about Victor because not a lot has been written about him to describe him. To be honest, maybe I am too close to the project now and perhaps I don’t recognise the magic that is Victor; he can be a challenging person to deal with – it is not all roses when you work with him. But when you look at the people around him in sailing and from business, people like Marcus, and how much they admire and look up to him, they have those like-minded qualities. Victor knows what he wants in life which is important and he can communicate that well. It is easy to have an internal goal, but to say it out loud and to back yourself – that is tough. This is something he does really well – yes, for himself, but also for the people around him. He is really good at verbalising what he is sensing from them. But what really sets him apart is that he knows if you are capable of something – and if he believes that you are, then he goes out of his way to make sure you achieve it. Blue Robinson
USA Doom and gloom be damned
‘Given the pressures of modern life, the very idea of taking an entire week off for racing sailboats seems like an unrealistic indulgence. Who can still do that in 2019?’
So say the armchair soothsayers to predict doom and gloom about the future of the sport, yet to look at this year’s Storm Trysail Club’s Block Island Race Week these claims seem like so much fake news. The oldest race week in the US (modelled on Cowes
SEAHORSE 27
a (Sail 062)
GENNAKERS, CODES ZERO, ASYMMETRIC SPINNAKERS & STAY
Southampton Boat Show (Eurospars - J243) Cannes Yachting festival
YSAILS
30 years of
race*
exper ience in Top-Down & Code Zero fur l ing
Special De Cable Less New!
signed Thimble
>
RATCHET FacnorPatent LIGHT
EASY CONNECTION
EASY FURLING NG
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