2008 Olympic Sailing - Medalists and Wrap-up

Qingdao, China - The 2008 Olympic sailing is now behind us. The medals have been awarded, the fireworks have been fired, the sails have been furled, and the party's over. Qingdao will be hosting the 2008 Paralympic Sailing shortly, but love 'em or hate 'em, the 2008 Olympics are done. In what has been called the worst Olympic sailing venue ever, the races were run - successfully for the most part - and despite all of the difficulties with the conditions and the host country, the Olympic sailing was just that: successful if not ideal.

 

In truth, the Qingdao sailing venue turned out to be better than many expected, what with the Olympic goo having been beaten back by 30,000 hands, but the winds were as terrible as predicted, and made for poor TV viewing - that is if your country offered any TV viewing. In fact, the 2008 Olympics were the most watched event on television - ever - yet very few people were able to see sailing at all. When they could watch, it was mostly panning shots of the crowds on shore, sweltering while the fleet bobbed around waiting for wind.

 

For the competitors, of course, it's the Olympics no matter if it's in a shallow puddle, and an Olympic Medal is an Olympic Medal. The sailing was difficult if not action-packed, and many of those able to adapt to the conditions in Qingdao are now Olympic medalists. Some top-ranked sailors, and some long-shots, now wear Gold, Silver and Bronze, and that is precisely what the Olympics should be: a world-class competition, capable of producing surprises.

 

Olympic 470 Class (Women's)
	AUS		Elise Rechichi Tessa Parkinson
	NED		Marcelien De Koning Lobke Berkhout
	BRA		Fernanda Oliveira Isabel Swan

 

Olympic Sailing - 470 Class Sailboats

Sailing at the 2008 Olympics - 470 Race Results

Beijing Olympics 470 Medals

 

 

 

 

Olympic 470 Class (Men's)
	AUS		Nathan Wilmot Malcolm Page
	GBR		Nick Rogers Joe Glanfield
	FRA		Nicolas Charbonnier Olivier Bausset

 

Olympic Sailing - 470 Class Sailboats

Sailing at the 2008 Olympics - 470 Race Results

Beijing Olympics 470 Medals

 

 

 

 

Olympic 49er Class
	DEN		Jonas Warrer Martin Kirketerp Ibsen
	ESP		Iker Martinez de Lizarduy Xabier Fernandez Gaztañaga
	GER		Jan-Peter Peckolt Hannes Peckolt

Olympic Sailing - 49er Class Sailboats

Sailing at the 2008 Olympics - 49er Race Results

Beijing Olympics - 49er Medals

 

 

 

Olympic Finn Class
	GBR		Ben Ainslie
	USA		Zach Railey
	FRA		Guillaume Florent

Olympic Sailing - Finn Class Sailboats

Sailing at the 2008 Olympics - Finn Race Results

Beijing Olympics - Finn Medals

 

 

 

Olympic Laser Class
	GBR		Paul Goodison
	SLO		Vasilij Zbogar
	ITA		Diego Romero

Olympic Sailing - Laser Class Sailboats

Sailing at the 2008 Olympics - Laser Race Results

Beijing Olympics - Laser Medals

 

 

 

Olympic Laser Radial Class
	USA		Anna Tunnicliffe
	LTU		Gintare Volungeviciute
	CHN		Lijia Xu

Olympic Sailing - Laser Radial Class Sailboats

Sailing at the 2008 Olympics - Laser Radial Race Results

Beijing Olympics - Laser Radial Medals

 

 

 

Olympic Star Class
	GBR		Iain Percy Andrew Simpson
	BRA		Robert Scheidt Bruno Prada
	SWE		Fredrik Loof Anders Ekstrom

Olympic Sailing - Star Class Sailboats

Sailing at the 2008 Olympics - Star Race Results

Beijing Olympics - Star Medals

 

 

Olympic Tornado Class
	ESP		Fernando Echavarri Anton Paz Blanco
	AUS		Darren Bundock Glenn Ashby
	ARG		Santiago Lange Carlos Espínola

Olympic Sailing - Tornado Class Catamarans

Sailing at the 2008 Olympics - Tornado Race Results

Beijing Olympics - Tornado Medals

 

 

 

Olympic Yngling Class
	GBR		Sarah Ayton Sarah Webb Pippa Wilson
	NED		Mandy Mulder Annemieke Bes Merel Witteveen
	GRE		Sofia Bekatorou Sofia Papadopoulou Virginia Kravarioti

Olympic Sailing 2008 - Yngling Class Sailboats

Sailing at the Olympics - Yngling Race Results

Olympic Podium - Yngling Medalists

 

 

- 2008 Olympic Sailing - Medalists and Wrap-up by B. Hampton exclusively for YachtPals.com

Submitted By YachtPals on 24 Aug

Olympics,Sailing,Qingdao,China,Beijing, Olympic, sailboats, sailboat, sailing Olympics, olympics sailing, Olympic sailing, Olympics sailing, sailing medals, olympic sailing medals, sailing medal

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