Sailing: NZ team critical of Games regatta

1.00pm - By DANIEL GILHOOLY

ATHENS - The medal-less New Zealand yachting team have hit out at what they say was a messily run Olympic regatta.

Team manager Don Cowie waited until New Zealand's involvement ended yesterday before voicing his disappointment about the inflexible and unfair format, which he claimed didn't reach Olympic standards.

"We don't want to sound like sour grapes but we've had some problems with the race management here," Cowie said.

"The whole regatta's been difficult at times."

He said organisers were too keen to go ahead with races in inadequate conditions at 1pm local time when the winds tended to be far more steady 2-3 hours later in the afternoon.

A prime example was the 11th and final men's Mistral race today which went ahead in turbulent, unpredictable winds. It was halved in length so sailors weren't subjected to the conditions for too long.

Cowie said other major regattas would never allow such a farcical spectacle but organisers here were forced into it because of television pressure and the scheduling of medal ceremonies on the same day as the last race.

New Zealand Mistral sailor Ashley agreed conditions were "bizarre" while women's teammate Barbara Kendall called it "crazy".

"The wind was all over the show, there were 30-40 degree shifts in the lines of wind. It's not a fair event in that respect," said Kendall, who also underwent a shortened final race today.

"I think at times they have made a few bad calls.

"The race committee has been a little bit eager to get a race away when if they waited another two hours we would have had a much better breeze."

She felt for world class Brazilian Ricardo Santos, who had led the men's Mistral regatta throughout but finished 17th today and missed out on a medal altogether.

However, Kendall wouldn't criticise the race jury which disallowed an appeal against the early start ruling in race five that virtually removed any prospect of a fourth Olympic medal.

"It's very hard to win those things in the jury but you have to give it a go," she said.

Cowie said the staggered finish of each class through this week had removed much of the atmosphere usually associated with an Olympic regatta.

At most previous Games, all medal ceremonies were held on the same night, said Cowie, who won silver with Rod Davis in the Star class at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

"You get this massive party and crowd atmosphere with everybody getting medals. Whereas here they've spread them out," he said.

"By the end of this event the whole place is going to be empty and the Star boat sailors (on the last day) are going to be wandering around here as if it's some normal old regatta.

"It's not right, it should be a big party.

However, Kendall says she will be back in Beijing after the disappointment of Athens where two disqualifications cost her a medal.

She would target the next Olympic Games in 2008, seeking to win a fourth sailing medal that eluded her here.

"You have to back off after one of these things because they exhaust you but I'm not quitting, I'm not throwing the sail in," she said.

- NZPA