YNZ: Windsurfing AND Kiteboarding for the Olympics

by Jodie Bakewell-White

In May this year the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Council will decide the Olympic Events slate for sailing at the 2016 Olympic Games, and will consider submissions received last week on their November proposed slate before making the final decision.

Yachting New Zealand’s Board of Directors made a submission concerned that the ISAF proposed events slate didn’t adequately address issues raised by the Olympic Commission Report. Yachting New Zealand (YNZ) proposed an alternative slate and an announcement around this can be viewed here including a link to the YNZ submission in full.

The ISAF proposed slate pits two of the sport’s board disciplines – wind surfing and kite boarding - against each other in the battle for inclusion which means it’s one or the other.

YNZ believes that both events have a place in modern Olympic sailing and that introducing kite-boarding without eliminating wind-surfing would build the appeal of the sport for media and spectators – a key concern of the Olympic Commission Report. YNZ proposed in its submission that ISAF should promote kite-boarding to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as a new sailing event for 2020 and that the sport be introduced to Olympic class events as early as late 2011.

YNZ suggested that a Men’s and Women’s kite-boarding should be included at the 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships in December in Perth to demonstrate the suitability for inclusion into the Olympic slate.

YNZ proposed that ISAF also approach the IOC to request that Men’s and Women’s kite board events be included as a demonstration sport at the 2016 Olympic Games with the aim of achieving Men’s and Women’s kite-board events as full medal events in the 2020 Olympic Games.

The ISAF Council meet in May in St Petersburg, Russia.

Links

Download the YNZ submission made to ISAF on Wednesday 9 May
More on the provisional slate approved by ISAF in November 2010 here
Download the Olympic Commission report from the ISAF website here

Yachting New Zealand