Matt Wearn is assured of GOLD with a race to spare.  Matt will officially be crowned Olympic Champion when he contests his Medal Race on Sunday as he has an insurmountable 22-point lead after 10 races. The result table is Here.

It was a tough day on the water for all. Matt posted a 12 and 8 in the light conditions on Friday (Races 9 and 10) after two wins on Thursday.  Unfortunately for him Cypriot Pavlos Kontides carded a 28th in race 10 which put him out of range of Matt going into the medal race on Sunday. According to the SIs Matt needs only to “make a genuine effort to start, sail the course and finish” in the medal race to take the gold.

“It was a tough day of racing, but I am happy to finish off with that. And yeah, I’m going to be a Gold Medallist.”
“I am still processing it myself,” said Matt’s dad Brad Wearn after the final race. “It’s his destiny. This has been his goal since he was knee-high to a grasshopper. We are just so proud of him, he’s pushed himself so hard and has been surrounded by great people along the way.”
Wearn wont be able to celebrate with family tonight, and making things more difficult is that COVID protocols will also prevent him from celebrating with fiancée Emma Plasschaert who is sailing the Laser Radial for Belgium at these Games.

Mara Stransky saved the best to last in her first Olympic campaign today. She set aside some earlier disappointment to put together the race day of her life, finishing her regatta with a third and a win in the final fleet race.

The great final day lifted Mara to a creditable 14th in the red hot fleet.

You can follow the Olympic sailing events in Enoshima on the following.

Stream video 7plus  Sailing Channel

Get free 7plus Olympic Channels

Live Tracking

World Sailing Olympic Site

Olympic Sailing Results

Racing Schedule and Course Location

Australian Sailing Team Facebook

Australian Sailing Team Twitter

Check NSW & ACT Laser site Olympics page for on site updates and information.

See photos of Matt and Mara from World Sailing Here.

Bruce Kirby Canadian born sailing legend and designer of many boats including the Laser passed away July 18, 2021. He was 92 years of age.

Bruce was a newspaper man in Ottawa and Montreal before he became a yacht designer. We was a pioneering sailing journalist, editor of One-Design and Off-Shore Yachtsman, which is still going today as Sailing World magazine.

A competitive sailor in International 14 dinghies from age 15 he went on to become a world-class sailor and Olympian. He represented Canada in the 1956, 1964, and 1968 Olympics.

As well as designing the Laser some background of which you can find Here Bruce’s design career included a multitude of successful classes such as the Sonar, Kirby 25 and Ideal 18, America’s Cup Twelve Meters, production racer/cruisers and offshore racing boats.

After a years delay and considerable uncertainty the Tokyo Olympics will kick off with the opening ceremony from 9pm AEST on Friday, July 23.

Sailing will commence on the 25th of July, with the medal races taking place from 31 July to 4 August. The schedule and Olympic sailing team information is Here.  Sailing is scheduled between 1.00pm and 7.00pm AEST each day.

Channel 7 has the broadcast and streaming rights to the Olympics in Australia. Highlight sports will largely be shown on 7’s free to air channels.

In addition there are 7plus apps which will have over 40 channels streaming live action from the Games. You can download the 7plus iOS or Android app free from the App Store or Google Play Store. To view sailing simply log in to the app on your smartphone, tablet, go to the Olympics section and browse the streams to find sailing. You will then be able to watch the live action.

You can also access the Olympics streams on your computer. Right now the best place to go is 7plus.com.au/Olympics. Shortly before the Games sport specific pages will be launched. The one for sailing will be 7plus.com.au/olympic-games-tokyo-sailing.

You can also get 7plus on Fetch TV, Telstra TV, Apple TV 4th Gen+, Chromecast, Android TV, Samsung TV, Sony Linux TV, LG TV (2016 and later) and Playstation 4.

World Sailing has setup a site with all the Tokyo Olympic Sailing information at https://tokyo2020.sailing.org/news/ . You can subscribe on this site to get updates and results.

Best wishes to our 13 Olympic sailors and the entire 472 Australians who will compete in Tokyo. It has been a tough preparation for most of these athletes. There are links to the profiles of the 13 Australian Olympic sailors Here. Just click the photo to see the profile.

Australian Sailing says “Australia has a rich history of success in Olympic sailing and this year is no different with a number of strong Gold Medal chances alongside some young and emerging talent. Our Laser, Men’s 470 and Nacra 17 classes were all in the medals the last time they competed at a World Championships, and you can write off the other classes at your own risk. All our competitors have strong podium results on the international stage and it is the Olympics – anything can happen and probably will.”

Southeast Sailboats in the UK has a race track conditions and form guide for the Laser Men’s event Here. and World Sailing has the guide to the top ranked Laser Women Here

The hands of the front half of the winning 470 team Will Ryan pictured show the wear and tear and the reward of the Belcher/Ryan team.

A fabulous effort rewarded by Mathew carrying the Australian flag in the closing ceremony.

The Laser 50th Anniversary Event was held on Sydney Harbour on Sunday 20th June. The fleet of over 110 boats enjoyed the 10 -18 knots of breeze to complete the course from Farm Cove in front of the Opera House to Watsons Bay.

A number of interstate sailors who planned to participate were deterred by the mini COVID outbreak some others by the early start and the cold and rain. Those who did brave the conditions had a great time on the water and enjoyed the festivities, BBQ and prize draw back at Double Bay Sailing Club afterwards.

Pictured above is part of the fleet led by 13 times Laser World Masters Champion Brett Beyer sailing the prize 50 Anniversary gold boat donated by PSA. NB Sailsports also donated three ILCA sails for the draw.

Photos below are of Frant Bucek sailing his 1974 vintage Laser. The boat Frant insists is quite sound despite its years. The same could be said of many of the masters sailors on the day. The other is Peter (Pedro) Stephinson  sailing with Michael Blackburn’s sail and a boat from the Sydney Olympics in 2000. These Olympics were sailed on much the same water as the 50th event. Photos are by Aero Media

There are lots of photos taken by Jon West which can be viewed and purchased from his web site Here.

Story carried by Sail World is Here. Jeff Loosemore’s video perspective is Here.

ILCA Have announced opening of applications for Men’s and Women’s Radial (Now ILCA 6) World Championships 10-17 October Shoreacres Texas USA.

Australians considering competing in these events should review the ILCA World Championships COVID-19 Notice information Here. In the light of the Australian Government’s ban on Australian citizens and permanent residents travelling overseas sailors wishing to participate in these events should review the information on the Department of Home Affairs’ web site Here

ILCA are moving ahead with entry offers for other 2021 World Championships. You can view the details for each of the seven World Championships on the ILCA web site Here.

ILCA Have announced opening of applications for Men’s and Women’s Radial (Now ILCA 6) World Championships 10-17 October Shoreacres Texas USA.

ILCA are moving ahead with entry offers for other 2021 World Championships. You can view the details for each of the seven World Championships on the ILCA web site Here.

Australians considering competing in these events should review the ILCA World Championships COVID-19 Notice information Here. In the light of the Australian Government’s ban on Australian citizens and permanent residents travelling overseas sailors wishing to participate in these events should review the information on the Department of Home Affairs’ web site Here.