How will US Olympic Program proceed?

With the US Sailing lawsuit now dropped against its largest private financial supporter of the US Olympic Sailing Program, there remains much to do in rebuilding a program for what once was the dominant nation. Bill Canfield, past President of Virgin Islands Sailing Association and longtime regatta director and Olympic observer, shares how he filled a blank piece of paper:

It appears the stumbling blocks are removed and US Sailing will have a blank sheet (again) to put forward a completely new plan for Olympic Sailing success. But in the past, US Sailing has proven to be a very difficult and inconsistent boss as we have shed program directors almost yearly.

After Tokyo 2020, a well-known Think Tank was contacted for advice and it was suggested we do things as we had in our 1980 glory years, which also came up short as one would have expected. Past Olympic medalists are coming forward with suggestions and designing programs but there is little agreement in what the right plan might be among this group.

While America One Racing is willing to stay involved, they are likely more willing to financially support their own chosen sailors rather than the whole sailing team, leading to conflict with team members. From our existing Paris 2024 team, only a limited few will commit to LA 28. I question whether the current US Sailing leadership has the expertise to constructively fill in this blank sheet. Time will tell.

First issue to resolve is recruitment: Our elite 16 and 17 years must catch the Olympic bug, be ready to forego college sailing (and maybe college all together), and choose a boat they will fall in love with for at least eight years.

Finance is the next obstacle: Design and implement a financial plan that will allow these sailors to spend possibly six million dollars over two quad campaigns.

Elite coaching: Without a team of skilled Olympic-level sailors in place, we must attract the necessary coaching skills that win medals and is affordable.

Existing organization: What will keep this all together if early days don’t bring expected results? History has shown an impatient group driven by instant success with little long view.

Leadership: Must find a charismatic, financially attuned individual who can gain the trust of athletes and coaches and, most importantly, have the confidence to stand up and say no to US Sailing bosses. I thought Malcolm Paige and Paul Cayard had the necessary skills but they didn’t survive the scrutiny. Are there other possibilities out there?

The Los Angeles 2028 Olympics is four years off and time is short. Hopefully, decisions are made and announcements forthcoming to this almost impossible situation.

Paris 2024 Olympic Sailing Program:
Men’s One Person Dinghy – ILCA 7
Women’s One Person Dinghy – ILCA 6
Mixed Two Person Dinghy – 470
Men’s Skiff – 49er
Women’s Skiff – 49erFX
Men’s Kiteboard – Formula Kite Class
Women’s Kiteboard – Formula Kite Class
Men’s Windsurfing – iQFOiL
Women’s Windsurfing – iQFOiL
Mixed Multihull – Nacra 17

Venue: Marseille, France
Dates: July 28-August 9

Details:
• Paris website: https://www.paris2024.org/en/the-olympic-games-paris-2024/
• World Sailing microsite: https://paris2024.sailing.org/