It has been a part of sailing in the Olympics since 1952, but this summer, when the Finn dinghy fleet takes to the waters of Enoshima it will be its final Olympic outingThis summer will be last time we see the Finn dinghy at the Olympic Games. In order to meet the\u00a0directive from the International Olympic Committee for equal participation and events for men and women at the Paris 2024 Games, World Sailing made the decision to drop the Finn class from the Olympic roster, in favour of a mixed double-handed offshore event (along with a mixed kiteboarding relay race, while the mixed offshore event was itself recently ditched for separate Men\u2019s and Women\u2019s kitesurfing medals).
\nAfter the departure of the Star ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games, the Finn took up the mantle as longest serving Olympic class \u2013 a baton, which will now be passed to the 470 class.
\nThe Finn dinghy is synonymous with greatness. It debuted as an Olympic class in Helskini in 1952, where gold was won by Danish legend Paul Elvstr\u00f8m, defending the heavyweight dinghy title he had won at London in the Firefly class.
\nElvstr\u00f8m went on to win three consecutive Finn golds, setting the bar for a class that has been a rite of passage for many of the greatest sailors of all time. Jochen Sch\u00fcmann, Russell Coutts, Iain Percy and, of course, four-times Gold medallist Ben Ainslie fill the roll of honour.
\nWith a 69-year Olympic history, the Finn is the longest standing item of Olympic sailing equipment, having been designed in 1949 by Swedish canoe designer, Rickard Sarby. The 1952 Games was also the first time the Soviet Union and People\u2019s Republic of China took part, women track athletes ran no further than 200 metres, and the Fosbury flop hadn\u2019t been invented, so seismic have the changes been to the modern Olympics since its introduction.<\/p>\n
Finn dinghy class secretary, and author of several books on its history, Robert Deaves explains: \u201cFor many sailors, back then and today, the Finn became a lifestyle choice as much as an Olympic sport. Sailors would immerse themselves in a training routine, devoted to living and breathing the boat. The boat came to exemplify the Olympic motto of \u2018Citius, Altius, Fortius\u2019, as the sailors challenged themselves to become faster, better and stronger.
\nArticle continues below\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGiles Scott: Can the Brit secure a second gold in Tokyo?<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGiles Scott is waiting. Like all of this year\u2019s Olympic cohort, he is in a strange pre-Games limbo. Normally at\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tShirley Robertson on why offshore racing should be in the Paris Olympics<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWith just three years until the 2024 Olympics take place in Paris, the Olympic sailing classes for the 2024 Games\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cThe original boats had wooden hulls, wooden spars and cotton sails. Today\u2019s Finns use modern materials such as carbon masts, Kevlar sails and GRP hulls, but the basic concept, shape and dimensions are the same.
\n\u201cThe key to the boat is twofold. First the hull needs the correct flexibility and ability to \u2018twist\u2019 through waves and gusts, and secondly the rig can be tailored to each sailor\u2019s weight, height and sailing style. Improved technology such as carbon masts and GRP hulls made this process more scientific and repeatable. The objective is always creating power and speed, but also with the ability to depower automatically through the gusts, with the hull twisting and the mast falling off to open the leech.\u201d
\nBen Ainslie says part of the class\u2019s appeal is that it is a complete test. \u201cIt\u2019s a huge, huge physical challenge. To be successful in the class you have to be committed to your training, to the physical aspect of the sport, but also the technical challenges of making a Finn go fast set you in good stead for going into other areas, such as the America\u2019s Cup. Understanding the dynamics of what makes the boat go fast is really critical to having a successful career.\u201d
\nIn 2018 the sport\u2019s governing body, World Sailing, voted to replace the Finn dinghy at the Olympics with a mixed offshore class, in part due to the need for parity of men\u2019s and women\u2019s medals. The decision was much debated \u2013 not least following the IOC\u2019s request that World Sailing propose an alternative, leading some to briefly hope that the Finn could be reinstated. But most believe the Finn\u2019s days are forever over, leaving few Olympic options for heavier male dinghy sailors.
\n\u201cI\u2019ve always tried to stay away as much as possible from the politics side of World Sailing and class selection, and not really get involved,\u201d says Giles Scott. \u201cBut I think it\u2019s been a bit of a calamity of errors. It\u2019s not been great that the IOC had to wade in. The Finn being on the butt end of that is obviously a shame, and I think every Finn sailor would say that because we do love the boat.
\n\u201cBut the one thing that stands out for me is that it is not necessarily the class, it\u2019s the people, and the fact that there\u2019s not really a replacement for the guys coming through that are too big to sail Lasers and 49ers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the real shame because I think back and, if this had been happening 10 years ago or so, then I wouldn\u2019t be an Olympic champion and I quite possibly wouldn\u2019t have had the same doors opened for me in other forms of sailing.\u201d
\nAinslie concurs: \u201cI think it\u2019s a real shame. For the Finn class because of its history, but also for the sport of sailing, because it\u2019s really hard to see an avenue at the moment for bigger athletes to compete in the Olympics and sailing.
\n\u201cAnd I think that\u2019s a real missed opportunity for the sport to be able to showcase athletes of that intensity at that size.\u201d
\nAway from the Olympic circuit, however, there is every indication that the Finn will continue to flourish. The class not only runs enormously popular Masters events, but also Grand Masters, and even Grand Grand Masters, so lifelong is the loyalty of many Finn sailors to the design.<\/p>\n
If you enjoyed this\u2026.<\/p>\n
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The post Finn dinghy: Farewell to Olympics appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It has been a part of sailing in the Olympics since 1952, but this summer, when the Finn dinghy fleet takes to the waters of Enoshima it will be its final Olympic outingThis summer will be last time we see … <\/p>\n