US SAILING DETERMINES RANKING SYSTEM
FOR 2007 US SAILING TEAM

Portsmouth, R.I. (June 5, 2006) – US SAILING, the national governing body for the sport, has determined the ranking system for the 2007 US Sailing Team. Each year, US SAILING names the members of the US Sailing Team based on athletes’ performances at a series of qualifying regattas. The 2007 ranking system names at least three qualifying events for each Olympic class. US SAILING’s 2007 Rolex Miami OCR and the Pre-Trials are mandatory events for all 11 classes. The ranking system for the 2007 US Sailing Team determines the top-ranked athlete in each class who will be selected to compete in the 2007 Olympic Test event, scheduled for August, 2007, in Qingdao, China.

The qualifying events for each class selected for the 2008 Olympic Games are:

Finn (Men) – Must sail, must count all three events:
• Finn Pre-Trials Newport Beach, Calif., October 19-22, 2006
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007
• Finn Midwinters – Fort Lauderdale, Fla., February 1-4, 2007

470 (Men and Women) – Must sail, must count all three events:
• 470 Pre-Trials – Long Beach, Calif., October 25-29, 2006
• North American Championships – Miami, Fla., January 12-15, 2007
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007

49er (Open) – Must sail, must count all three events:
• 49er Pre-Trials – San Diego, October 19-22, 2006
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007
• North American Championships – TBA, February 1-4, 2007

Laser (Men) – Must sail, must count all three events:
• Laser Pre-Trials – Newport, R.I., October 11-15, 2006
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007
• Laser Midwinters East – Clearwater, Fla., February 22-25, 2007

Laser Radial (Women) -- Must sail, must count all three events:
• Laser Radial Pre-Trials – Newport, R.I., October 11-15, 2006
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007
• Radial Women's North American Championships – Fort Lauderdale, Fla., February 1-4, 2007

Neil Pryde RS-X (Men and Women) – Must sail, must count all three events:
• RS:X Pre-Trials – Long Beach, Calif., October 25-29, 2006
• RS:X Championships – TBA, January 12-15, 2007
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007

Star (Men) – Must sail, must count Pre-Trials and Rolex Miami OCR, plus one of the other two events:
• Star World Championships – San Francisco, Calif., September 27 - October 8, 2006
• Star Pre-Trials -- Marina del Rey, Calif., October 19-22, 2006
• North American Championships – Miami, Fla., November 14-19, 2006
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007

Tornado (Open) – Must sail, must count all three events:
• Tornado Pre-Trials – San Diego, Calif., October 12-15, 2006
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007
• North American Championships – TBA, January 30 - February 2, 2007

Yngling (Women) – Must sail, must count all three events:
• Yngling Pre-Trials – Newport, R.I., October 11-15, 2006
• Rolex Miami OCR – Miami, Fla., January 21-28, 2007
• Women's Yngling North American Championships -- Miami, Fla., February 1-4, 2007

As part of US SAILING's Olympic Sailing Committee (OSC) ongoing mission to facilitate the success of elite performance athletes, the US Sailing Team will choose the top three (3) ranked sailors in each of the 11 classes. The athletes chosen to represent the United States at the Olympic and Paralympic Games will receive the highest level of support, fundraising and coaching from US SAILING.

The US Sailing Team is coached by High Performance Director Gary Bodie (Hampton, Va.), and Olympic Coaches Luther Carpenter (Laporte, TX) and Skip Whyte (Wickford, R.I.). Sponsors of the 2007 US Sailing Team are Rolex Watch U.S.A., Nautica, Vanguard Sailboats, Gill, Zodiac of North America, Sperry Top-Sider, Harken, New England Ropes, Nikon, Extrasport, and Team McLube.

A complete overview of the ranking system and qualifying events for the 2007 US Sailing Team is available at www.ussailing.org/olympics/usst.htm. The 2008 Olympic Games are scheduled for August 8-24, 2008, in Beijing, China. The Olympic Regatta will be held in Qingdao, a coastal city located 430 miles east of Beijing.

The US Sailing Team is managed by US SAILING, national governing body of the sport. Headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, US SAILING’s mission is to encourage participation and promote excellence in sailing in the U.S. US SAILING offers training and education programs, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including the US Sailing Teams and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Teams. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.

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