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 August
25
– At every Olympics there seems to be a defining moment that stands out
above all of the activities surrounding the Games. In my opinion, we
had one today. Israel’s Gal Fridman won the Gold Medal in the men’s
windsurfing event. This is the first Gold medal ever won by an Israeli
athlete in any Olympic Games competition in history, and Gal will be a
national hero once he returns home. Gal dedicated his medal to the
memory of the Israeli athletes who were killed at the 1972 Munich
Olympic Games – it was a very poignant reminder of the saddest day in
Olympic history.
With Gal winning a medal, the press turned out in droves for the press
conference and personal interviews. When something like this happens,
press outlets who normally would have no interest in our sport send
their reporters, photographers and camera crew to cover the story. Most
don’t have a clue about sailing, and not having been to the Agios Kosmas
venue before, they need a lot of hand-holding. The Media Center, where
all the written press and photographers are working from, had a record
number of journalists for the day.
With Greek boardsailor Nikos Kakalamanakis winning the silver, there was
also a heavy turnout of Greek media and well-wishers. All combined, it
made for a very animated (not to mention loud) medal ceremony.
In other sailing, our Star and Tornado teams had an up and down day.
Tornados slipped to second place following two average races. They were
leading at one point in the first race and then finished sixth in the
end. In the Star race USA was 15th at one point and ended up
winning the race when a big shift came on the last leg. In their second
race they sailed, in their opinion, a good race yet managed only to
finish 11th. To say the very least sailing on the Saronikos
Gulf is extremely challenging, frustrating and at some points, depending
on your position, rewarding.
We are winding down in this 2004 Olympic Games as each day more and more
athletes and their boats and equipment depart for home. By the last day
of sailing (Saturday) there will only be 68 athletes out of 400 still
competing.
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