U.S. Qualifies for Country Selection in Finn Class
Upon completion of racing at the 2019 Finn European Championships, Caleb Paine finished in 11th place overall, earning the U.S. country selection to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 in the Finn class.
Eight countries earned selection last summer, at the 2018 Sailing World Championships in Aarhus. This week, four more sports were on the line, Paine secured the third spot.
Athlete selection will determine which U.S. sailor will represent the country and compete in Tokyo. Selection for these sailors could begin as early as the Olympic Test Event in Enoshima, this summer, and run as late at the 2020 Finn World Championships next spring. Click here for more full athlete selection procedures.
Finn European Championships, U.S. Athlete Results:
View full scores here.
- Caleb Paine (San Diego, Calif) – 11th, 14-17-38-6-35-16-16-16-3
- Luke Muller (Fort Pierce, Fla.) – 41st, UFD-26-8-29-59-37-37-61-19
- Eric Anderson (Chicago, Ill.) – 60th, 55-67-70-58-53-60-60-32-56
Updated: 5/18/19
Storms and Light Air Stall Country Qualification
The fleet of 84 Finns from 33 nations had a long day of waiting on shore followed by a brief excursion onto the water, only to be turned around as storm cell appeared from Athens. After a further wait onshore racing was abandoned for the day around 18:30 local time.
Norway and Brazil secured their places at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games as the penultimate day of the Finn Europeans in Athens was abandoned late on Friday, with no more races sailed due to very light wind all day. Olympic champion Giles Scott, from Britain, will go into the medal race with a 15-point lead over world champion Zsombor Berecz, from Hungary, in second. America’s Cup winner, Andy Maloney, from New Zealand, cannot win gold but can take the silver. The medals can only go to these three champions.
Behind them, the battle for the remaining two Olympic places is intense with seven countries in the next nine places hoping to qualify, and with 35 points between them. At the moment, the two spots are occupied by Switzerland and the U.S., in 11th and 12tt, respectively. The points are still really close in the chasing group, so everyone will have to be at the top of their game tomorrow.
Updated: 5/17/19
Paine Puts the U.S. in Contention for Tokyo
U.S. hopes of qualifying the country for the representation in the Finn class are pinned on athlete, Caleb Paine, after day four at Finn Europeans. Paine finished all three races today in 16th. His consistent performance pulled him up six places in the standings and into the fourth sport for country qualification.
Close behind, there are only two and six points, respectively separating Paine from sailors hoping to represent Greece and Australia at the Games.
Updated: 5/16/19
Two More Races in the Books after Slow Morning
After another long day on the water waiting for breeze, two more races have been scored at the 2019 Finn European Championships.
Caleb Paine had a notable finish just outside the top five that briefly pulled him into the top ten overall. Although Paine followed up that finish with a 35, the U.S. is inching closer to country selection.
Luke Muller and Eric Anderson followed Paine’s slow but steady climb up the leaderboard today. Muller and Anderson moved up three and one places, respectively.
Updated: 5/15/19
Racing Finally Underway at Finn Europeans
After Monday’s racing was lost with no wind, the fleet was keen to get racing on Tuesday but was further postponed on shore, waiting for the wind to build. Finally, at 13:30 local time, the fleet was sent out and enjoyed three great races in a solid breeze, building from 10-12 knots to 15-16 later in the afternoon.
Caleb Paine leads the Americans in 23rd place, with only 10 points separating him from the top fifteen.
Right now, Croatia, Norway, France, and Spain are leading country selection to the 2020 Games. However, there’s plenty of racing to go before any qualifications are final.
The opening series is scheduled to resume tomorrow at 13:30 local time.
Updated: 5/14/19
Slow Start to Finn Europeans
The sailors at the 2019 Finn Open European Championship in Athens will have to wait another day before racing can commence after a long day waiting onshore Monday, with no racing possible in very light and unstable winds.
The fleet of 84 boats from 33 nations spent the day wishing for wind, but with several rain fronts passing over and often no more than 3-4 knots of wind, racing was eventually abandoned for the day shortly before 16:00 local time.
On Tuesday, the morning conditions are expected to be similar, so racing has been put back to 13:30 with three races scheduled.
Updated: 5/13/19
Preview: Country Qualification on the Line at Finn Europeans
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Bristol, R.I. – May 12, 2019) Finn sailors from around the globe begin racing tomorrow at the 2019 Open European Championship in Athens. In addition to the opportunity to train against the world’s best and fight for the title, four berths to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 are on the line. This year’s European Championship will serve as a country qualifier for the 2020 Games.
Last summer, eight nations qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics at the Hempel Sailing World Championships in Aarhus. With the exception of Japan, which gets a place as the host country, a total of 21 nations will be competing at this event, trying to earn representation at the Games. Athletes hoping to earn representation this week will need to be among the top four sailors who’s country is not already qualified to the 2020 Games.
U.S. athletes, Caleb Paine and Luke Muller are among those hoping to earn selection for their country this week. If Paine or Muller is among the top four unselected countries, the United States will earn a berth to the 2020 Games.
Racing is being held out of the Athens International Sailing Centre. The series of races will consist of 10 races from Monday, May 13 to Friday, May 17 with the 11th race and medal race on Saturday, May 18.
Finn European Championships, U.S. Competitors:
- Caleb Paine (San Diego, Calif)
- Luke Muller (Fort Pierce, Fla.)
- Eric Anderson (Chicago, Ill.)
VENUE
The 2019 Open Finn European Championships is being hosted by the Hellenic Sailing Federation in Athens, Greece. The sailing base is the Athens International Sailing Center.
SCHEDULE
Friday 10 May – Sunday 12 May / Measurement/Registration
Saturday 11 May / Opening Ceremony
Sunday 12 May / Practice Race
Monday 13 May – Friday 17 May / 10 Races Scheduled
Saturday 18 May / Medal Race and Final Race
Saturday 18 May / Closing Ceremony & Prize Giving
PRESS RELEASES
The Finn Class will release international press releases each day during the event. Sign up to receive event relates press here.
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS
Daily highlights will be produced by Beau Outteridge Productions and available on the Finn Class YouTube channel and Facebook.
All highlights and all other Finn Class videos can easily be found here.
VNR
VNR highlights will be available to download from the Finn Class Google drive here.
Interviews of sailors in English and home language will be carried out on demand only and made available for download, subject to schedules and available time. Please send requests to Robert Deaves.
LIVE FEED
There will be a daily live feed available through the YouTube channel on eio.gr.
Commentary will be provided Corky Rhodes.
TRACKING
Racing with be tracked each day with Sailracer here: http://finn.sailracer.org.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Follow the event through the Finn Class Social Media Channels
Hashtags for the event are: #finneuros #finnclass
PHOTOGRAPHY
Daily photo galleries will be posted on:
Flickr (Full galleries – medium resolution)
Selected high-resolution imagery will be available here to download from the World Sailing Photoshelter site using the password WSimages. Images are free for editorial use and must be credited accordingly.
All photos are free of rights for editorial use only, with credit to the photographer.
For specific requests please contact Robert Deaves robert@finnclass.org
ENTRIES
A list of all entries can be found here.
RESULTS
Results will be posted here.
DOCUMENTS
All event documents will be posted here.
US SAILING TEAM PRESS CONTACT
Brittney Manning; OlympicCommunications@ussailing.org
ABOUT THE US SAILING TEAM
The US Sailing Team is managed by the United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for the sport of sailing and sailboat racing. US Sailing names the top Olympic class athletes to the team annually, through both event qualification and at the discretion of team leadership. US Sailing helps these elite athletes with financial, logistical, coaching, technical, fitness, marketing, and communications support. US Sailing Team sponsors include partners Kilroy Realty, Helly Hansen, Harken, McLube, Groupe Beneteau, and Marlow Ropes. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org/olympics.