Team Manager Stephen Park's pride as Brits leave Rio as top sailing nation
by Imogen Stanley 20 Aug 2016 05:17 NZST
8-18 August 2016
Finn gold for Giles Scott at the Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition © Richard Langdon / Ocean Images
British Sailing Team Manager, Stephen Park, believes his team deserved to claim the accolade of top sailing nation at Rio 2016 as the "challenging and iconic" regatta came to a close yesterday (Thursday 18 August).
Two golds for Giles Scott (Finn) and Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark (470 Women) plus Nick Dempsey's RS:X windsurfing silver ensured Britain has topped the sailing medal table at four of the last five Olympics.
With 17 countries claiming the 30 medals from 10 events between them, Park thinks Rio lived up to its reputation as one of the most difficult places in the world to sail. At London 2012 the same numbers of medals was spread between 15 countries.
But he is happy to have seen history made by Britain's medal winners and believes being the top sailing nation is testament to the efforts of the whole British team.
Park said: "It has been a challenging regatta and it has been fantastic one. We are very lucky to be part of an incredible sport at what has been an incredible sporting event at a very challenging and iconic sailing venue.
"There have been some great performances and history made in terms of Nick becoming the most successful male windsurfer ever, winning the women's double handed 470 gold medal for the first time with Hannah and Saskia and Giles keeping that Finn gold medal within Team GB for 20 years.
"The spread of medals just shows the diversity, challenge and level of competition we have seen here. Roughly in half the events the medals changed in the Medal Race, so it has not just been tough for the Brits it has been tough for everybody.
"But our team have pulled together well, the coaches and support staff have done an absolutely excellent job, everyone has stuck together right until the very end and they absolutely deserve to go home as the top nation in the medal table."
A number of the British Sailing Team support staff will return to Rio in a couple of weeks for the Paralympic sailing regatta, which takes place between 12-17 September.
But for everyone else all eyes start to turn to Tokyo 2020 and preparing for the next Olympic regatta in Enoshima Yacht Harbor in the coastal city of Fujisawa.
Park added: "I think the sailing itself in Tokyo is going to be, on the face of it, far more simple than in Rio. It is not as difficult a venue to race in, it is predominantly a moderate to strong wind venue and, as a country, we are traditionally good in those conditions. I feel very confident in our opportunities we will have for Tokyo.
"A lot of our Podium and Podium Potential podium athletes are already working on that task and getting themselves in the frame to be competitive in time to be selected for Team GB in four years time.
"That four years is going to run away very, very quickly and I'm sure when we get there it will only seem like it was a blink of an eye we were stood here in Rio."
For more from the British Sailing Team at Rio 2016 visit www.rya.org.uk/Rio2016, follow @BritishSailing on Twitter and like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/britishsailingteam