IFA Rule changes – tell us what you think

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The International Secretary urgently needs our views on two proposed rule changes:

1) To unify the Junior age group to Under 23, in line with other Olympic sports and other Olympic classes

2) The second issue concerns a request from sailors to abandon, at World and European championships, the race for 11th onwards – or what they call ‘the losers race’. The solution the IFA Executive would like to propose is that on the last day of racing a final race for ALL sailors will be scheduled in the morning. The medal race would then be held shortly after. All sailors would be asked to remain on site until the completion of the Medal race and the prize giving ceremony. This will be trialed at the next Europeans in Barcelona and if successful will be recommended for a vote at the next AGM for implementation from the 2017 Europeans. It will not be used at the 2016 Finn Gold Cup.

The full details are available on the website here, Please let the BFA Secretary know your thoughts by replying to this Forum thread.

[GBR-61]

To kick-start the debate, my personal thoughts are that maybe the term ‘Finn Junior’ seems a bit out of date and somewhat demeaning, especially if the age group moves to Under 23. The fact is a 20-23 yr old Finn sailor is likely to be far more athletic and able than the rest of us, plus the recent research proves they are starting younger, so to use a term that suggest their level of competition is below that of the seniors seems wrong and in brand marketing terms is under-selling the product. I would rather see it called the ‘Under 23 Championship’, as you would in Rugby or hockey, and which suggests it is the highest level of competition at that age group. An 18 year old that then gets into the ‘Under 23’ squad would then be chuffed as he would be competing in a higher age group.

If the IFA is thinking of changing the age range then I think they have a great opportunity to re-brand the product and make it more appealing to the younger Finn sailor who might not wish to be branded a ‘Junior’? That could well raise the level of attendances at the Silver Cup which requires a minimum entry of 30 to count as a world championship.

Under 23 members please get in touch and tell us your views!

Thanks
John

[Tweeds548]

Hi John, I’m slightly confused by this, as I was under the impression that the Silver Cup was already a U23 event.
I think you’re right that the “Junior” tag is not really appropriate (in English), where the substitution of “Youth” makes much more sense. It also is at odds with the rest of the RYA Youth & Junior programme with the Junior classes up to 15 yrs old, and Youth under 19 (or even 21 in some cases like the Laser – another Olympic Class).
Branding as “Under 23” avoids all ambiguity and especially as the vast majority of our “Junior” sailors are currently comfortably under 20, this would make communications with media and sponsors far less awkward, avoiding the need to continually clarify what “Silver Cup” and “Junior” actually means. It would also add gravity to the achievements of our 16, 17 and 18 year olds, performing in a fleet of 20+ year old, full-time professional sailors.

As for the issue of the final race, I’m not sure what difference it makes – sailors will race if there’s a race on. It is a bit of a “dead rubber”, but it currently could give some valuable experience to some “up and coming” sailors. I’m certain that Cameron benefitted from this at the French Nationals, enabling him to experience and develop the front-of-fleet race skills and management at a big event.
For a “way down the fleet” sailor like myself, I’d find myself doing a race less than the top boys, having paid the same entry fee – the only difference would be that I could get my boat packed away on the trailer a bit earlier before driving across Europe (though I’d be expected to stay for the medal race and prize-giving). Personally, I hate the Medal Race concept; it was introduced to try and make it easier for TV audiences to understand the sport, with the Medal Race winner (hopefully) being the overall gold medalist. In practice this usually isn’t the case, with leaders protecting their position by sailing their competition down the fleet. I’d rather see a straight series of results, but if there is to be a Medal Race then the current method of a “loser’s race” (perhaps this could be rebranded the “B Final”) is my preference (though I’d like to hear the arguments of those that want a change).

All the best, Jon T

[PeterD]

Is the Silver Cup the only Junior / U23 event? I agree with John & Jon, U23 is much easier to understand (especially among sailors where ‘Junior’ is a younger classification than ‘Youth’). And it gives Callum 7 years in the age-group!

As for the medal race, does that mean the top 10 would only be decided after the ‘last’ race on the final day? How would protests be dealt with? Would the fleet come ashore and then the medal racers go out again? Again, I agree with Jon that a ‘B final’ would be a good alternative.

Peter

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