Did You Know

| Olympic 2000 |

Did You Know? Notes on the 2000 Olympic Sailing Team

Experience Counts - The USA's 2000 Olympic Sailing Team is one of the most experienced in history. Of its 18 members, 11 have competed in a previous Olympic Regatta, and eight of those have medals. It is also one of the oldest Teams with an average age of 36. The oldest sailor on the team, at age 46, is Team Captain Magnus Liljedahl (Miami, Fla.), crew for Mark Reynolds in the Star.

In a sport where fleets can number close to 100 on the starting line at a world championship, the considerably smaller fleets competing in the Olympic Regatta offer the real possibility that a national or world champion may find him/herself near the bottom of the scoreboard in Sydney.

Of the 68 countries sending sailors to Sydney, only seven nations (Australia, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain and the U.S.A.) have qualified to send a full delegation

California Dreamin' - Exactly half of our 2000 Olympic Yachting Team is from California (9 out of 18). The San Francisco Bay Area has the largest representation with Russ Silvestri (San Francisco) in the Finn (men's singlehanded dinghy); and skipper Jeff Madrigali (Novato), with crew Craig Healy (Tiburon) and Hartwell Jordan (Discovery Bay) in the Soling (open fleet/match racing keelboat). Southern California is home to crew Charlie Ogletree (Newport Beach) in the Tornado (open doublehanded multihull); Lanee Butler (Aliso Viejo) in the Mistral Women (women's windsurfer); skipper JJ Isler (La Jolla) and crew Pease Glaser (Long Beach) in the 470 Women (women's doublehanded dinghy); and skipper Mark Reynolds (San Diego) in the Star (open doublehanded keelboat).

The More (Medals) the Merrier - In two cases, if U.S. sailors bring home medals, they will add to a collection started by their spouses. 470 Women’s crew, Pease Glaser (Long Beach, Calif), would add to the 1984 Tornado silver medal won by husband Jay. Soling crew Craig Healy (Tiburon, Calif.) would display his next to wife Pam's 1992 470 Women's bronze.

And Then There's Mom. . . Soling crew Hartwell Jordan (Discovery Bay, Calif.) makes his Olympic debut 48 years after his mother, then Barbara Lynn Stark of Piedmont, Calif., competed in the 1952 Helsinki Games as a member of the U.S. Swimming Team.

Husband Coaches - Both Europe sailor Courtenay Dey (The Dalles, Ore./Rye, N.Y.) and 470 Women's crew Pease Glaser will be coached by their husbands, Jimmy and Jay, respectively, at these Olympic Games. Dey, competing in her second Olympic Regatta, is the 1996 Europe Olympic Bronze Medalist. Glaser is competing in her first Olympics after three tries a skipper, first in the 470 Women's class and then in the Tornado.

Dey Passes the Bounce-Back Test, Twice - When Courtenay Dey finished second at the Olympic Team Trials in the 470 Women's event last October (1999), she took one month off to think about what she'd do next. As the 1996 Europe Olympic Bronze Medalist, she decided to see how she'd stack up in that class's World Championship the following January (2000) in Brazil. A 14^th-place finish buoyed her spirits and she returned home to gain the needed 20 pounds to be truly competitive at the Europe Olympic Team Trials. "I went to the bakery every day and ate what people only dream of eating: cream filled donuts, things like that." Her training (which included turning that extra weight into muscle) and determination won her the Trials and resulting Olympic berth. The months since her Trials win have been anything but smooth sailing. In late spring the sudden death of Dey’s mother, Beverly Becker, was an unexpected setback. Having put her participation at international regattas on hold to help her father through the ordeal, Dey is not quite sure how she now measures up but is certain her mother, who was an avid sailor, will be her inspiration throughout the Games.

The 49er Class: Speed to Blow Your Booties Off! - The 49er, a 16-foot, high-performance skiff with double trapeze, retractable wings and a super-size sail area (639 sq. ft.), is the only new class sailing at the 2000 Olympic Games. Sailing faster than the speed of wind, the 49er is almost always on the edge of control. One slip can mean a flip, and 49er skippers and crew are notorious speed demons who don't fit the mold of typical sailors.

What Sibling Rivalry? - The McKee brothers of Seattle are among the best 49er sailors in the world, having spent two seasons Down Under sailing an Australian 18-foot skiff, another craft that delivers off-the-meter thrills. The 49er is a smaller version of the18-foot skiff (both boats are the work of Australian designer Julian Bethwaite) which can been seen sailing regularly in Sydney Harbor. Skill aside, skipper Jonathan and crew Charlie have an uncanny way of working together. With clockwork precision, they make bold moves, even with only seconds to react to the 49er's lightning-fast speeds. Both McKee brothers are Olympics medalists: Jonathan is the 1984 Flying Dutchman Olympic Gold Medalist, and Charlie is the 1988 470 Men’s Bronze Medalist.

Once More for the Camera, Please - After the 16 teams in the Soling class complete a fleet racing series, the top 12 teams will progress to a match race series to determine the Olympic medallists. Match racing (one-on-one) aggressively challenges the sailors and is more exciting for both spectators and television viewers. Soling match racing will take place in front of the world famous Sydney Opera House from September 23^rd through September 30^th.