Setting Sail for London

BY OLIVER BONE, CTVOlympics.ca

The Miami Olympic Class Regatta (MOCR) is the second stop of seven on the 2012 World Cup circuit.

This year it was also the final Canadian Olympic qualifier for the men’s Laser class and women’s Laser Radial class. For the other Canadian sailors in the remaining eight Olympic classes, it was the last chance to qualify for the Canadian Sailing Team.

Due to the competition’s proximity to the 2011 World Sailing Championships in Perth, Australia, the MOCR saw a smaller amount of competitors this year. However, many of the World’s best sailors came to Miami in preparation for the London 2012 Olympics.

The Canadian Olympic trials were narrowed down to two athletes in the men’s Laser fleet heading into MOCR; Toronto’s Chris Dold and Oakville’s David Wright, with Dold holding a three-point advantage coming into the event.

On day one, Wright sailed flawlessly, winning both races with Dold right on his wake, and scoring a second and a third place finish. Both raised their level of performance as they were battling in the top three overall.

Through ten races, Wright held a two-point lead heading into the medal race where the points were doubled. That meant that Dold would have needed to finish two boats ahead of Wright in order earn Olympic qualification.

It was not to be however as Wright finished fourth, two places ahead of Dold. This secured a third overall finish at the MOCR and the right to represent Canada at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

In the women’s Laser Radial class, it was Vancouver’s Isabella Bertold who led the trials with a four point lead over Glen Haven, Nova Scotia’s Danielle Dube, and 16 points over two-time Olympic veteran Lisa Ross.

Dube showed that she was up to the challenge, posting a second and a fifth place finish in the first day of racing while inconsistencies cost both Bertold and Ross on day one.

As the event progressed, Ross’ experience was able to shine through as she closed the gap by sailing more consistently and even taking top Canadian honours in the event. Despite Ross’ best efforts, the 16 point deficit from Perth was too great to overcome as Dube’s finish of 15th overall, has earned her a spot on the Canadian Olympic Team for the London 2012 Olympic Games. As for the remainder of the Canadian Sailing Team, they were able to achieve some notable results at this year’s MOCR; Toronto’s Greg Douglas finished third in the Finn; Trois Rivieres’ Dominique Vallee finished third in the RS:X; Toronto and Vancouver’s team of Cook and Lowden finished fifth in the 49er.

Two former Laser class sailors -- Mike Leigh and Luke Ramsay -- made the switch to the 470 men’s fleet less than a year ago and finished 15th. Leigh, previously ranked second in the Laser class World rankings, suffered from a back injury that would prevent him from being competitive in the Laser, while Ramsay was struggling to keep his weight up to competitive size.

Canada now has three teams confirmed for London 2012: Richard Clark and Tyler Bjorn in the Star class, David Wright in the Laser class, Danielle Dube in the Laser Radial. Remaining selections will take place over the coming months.

The Canadian Sailing Team has started to take shape, but the final look of the team is still to be determined.

Oliver Bone is originally from Montreal but currently resides in Halifax. He competed for Canada in the 470 class at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.