Cornwall's tribute to our Olympians (From Falmouth Packet)

Cornwall's tribute to our Olympians

8:50am Wednesday 27th August 2008

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)

The South West has paid tribute to region’s successful Olympians The area’s 59 athletes contributed to a total of 15 medals during the Beijing 2008 Olympics, with Ben Ainslie, Sarah Ayton, Paul Goodison, Andrew Simpson, Steve Williams and Peter Reed all striking gold.

A total of 47 medals were won by Team GB, meaning that medals won by athletes with links to the South West amounted to almost a third of the final total.

Highlights included Ben Ainslie, from Falmouth, confirming his status as the most decorated British sailor of all time with finn class gold.

Ben began sailing with his father as a youngster at Restronguet Sailing Club and at Mylor, and attended Truro College.

Beijing 2008 was the 31-year-old’s fourth Games, having attended the previous three Olympics. He won gold in the finn event at Athens 2004, gold in the laser at Sydney 2000 and silver in the laser at Atlanta 1996, meaning he was bidding for a third consecutive Olympic medal. He became GBR’s youngest Olympic sailing medallist aged 19 at Atlanta 1996.

He successfully defended his finn class gold medal from Athens 2004 to become Britain’s most decorated sailor of all time, surpassing Rodney Pattison’s previous record of two golds and a silver, a feat he had levelled after winning laser silver at Atlanta 1996, laser gold in Sydney 2000 and finn gold at Athens 2004.

He had to finish no more than five boats behind his nearest rival, Zach Riley of the USA to accumulate enough points to clinch an historic third consecutive Olympic gold, and after making the perfect start he sealed the medal race victory with a score of 23 points to his nearest rival’s 45.

Sport England South West will be contributing to Sport England’s purpose in the next four years to build the foundations of sporting success through a world-leading community sport system.

As one the of the nine regions of Sport England the South West will achieve this within the region by ensuring that talented people of all backgrounds are identified early, nurtured and helped toward the elite level, there is a growing the number of people playing sport and ensuring everyone who plays sport has a quality experience and is able to fulfil their potential.

As part of the overall Sport England Strategy, Sport England South West want by 2012 - People to excel in sport with well-defined, appropriate talent support systems for each sport so that more talented performers move onto elite programmes, to sustain participation in sport by increasing the proportion of people satisfied with the aspects of sport that are important to them, and reducing the drop-off at 16 years old in at least 5 selected sports by 25% and to grow participation in sport by 200,000 adults per annum to 2012, as well as seeing young people have access to five hours of sport a week.

It is hoped to achieve it through investment and influence into and with community clubs, coaches, volunteers and facilities.

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)