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Award inspires Olympic success
LIMASSOL, Cyprus -- Winning the award for World Sailor of the Year has inspired Greek sailors Sofia Bekatorou and Emilia Tsoulfa to aim high at the 2004 Olympic Games. The awards were made during the annual International Sailing Federation (ISAF) conference in Cyprus on Tuesday in recognition of outstanding sailing achievement from September 2001 to August 2002. On receiving the women's award Bekatorou and Tsoulfa said: "For us, being voted as the winners is not only a great honour for us, since Emilia and I represent a country that has a great history in sailing, but it is also a great motive and incentive towards the 2004 Athens Olympic Regatta.'" The Greek female team was nominated in recognition of their domination of the 470 class, the Olympic women's double-handed dinghy. Their opening season win at the SPA Regatta in Holland set the standard, and was followed by wins at virtually every ISAF Grade 1 and Grade 2 event they have entered in the past 12 months.
They have sat firmly at the top of the ISAF World Rankings during the period of nomination, having successfully defended their World Championship title twice, in September 2001 and again in September 2002 as well as defending their European title in July 2002. Briton Ben Ainslie won the male World Sailor of the Year Award in recognition of his outstanding transition from the Laser to the Finn Class. "The Olympics are the real focus right now, but after that it's my ambition to sail in the Volvo Ocean Race and be part of a winning America's Cup team.'" Having moved on from the Laser for a brief spell with the OneWorld America's Cup team, Ainslie returned to the Olympic circuit at the beginning of 2002 with his sights set on the Olympic men's single-handed event in the Finn Class. After only six months in the class, he had won the Finn Europeans, the Finn Gold Cup and the 2002 Athens Test Event. His plans include another Olympic Gold Medal in 2004. The nominees for the respective female and male ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards 2002 were: Female Sofia Bekatorou and Emilia Tsoulfa (Greece) Christine Briand (France): Twice winner of the women's keelboat event at the World Sailing Games. Adrienne Cahalan (Australia) and Helena Darvelid (Sweden): navigator and skipper duo who set a 24-hour sailing record on the maxi-catamaran Maiden II as well as a Round Britain and Ireland Record (for five weeks before it was regained by PlayStation) and the Cowes - Dinard, St Malo record. Sari Multala (Finland): World number one ranked Europe sailor Alessandra Sensini (Italy): Mistral European boardsailing champion Male Ben Ainslie (Britain) John Kostecki (USA): Winning skipper of the Volvo Ocean Race on Illbruck Iker Martinez and Xabier Fernandez (Spain): 49er class World and European Champions. Iain Percy (Britain): Ex-Finn Gold medallist who moved to the Olympic Star class and won the 2002 World Championship. Bruno Peyron (France): Smashed the Jules Verne Trophy Record by covering 28,035 nautical miles in 64 days, 8 hours, 37 minutes and 24 seconds on the maxi-catamaran Orange, breaking the record held by Olivier de Kersauson by seven days.
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