Olympic Games 1996

The Latest from Savannah

The Australians have a stuffed alligator at their tent with a do not enter sign on it.

The Italians have the obligatory cappucino machine in place, the brits in jest shouted to them that they'd better watch out, Italian expresso was a drug and they'd test positive.

Elsewhere...

Hubert Raudaschl, Austrian sailor sailing in his 10th olympics (more than anyone has ever done), was asked by Mary Henderson, wife of IYRU President Paul Henderson, if he was going to try again in the Finn. (Hubert won the Finn silver medal in a past Olympic game, and as any Finn sailor will tell you, it's a VERY manly boat). Reportedly this made Hubert's day. He's sailing helm in the Austrian Star, also a manly boat.

Measurement News
The Finns have been perfect, not one single problem with the boats. Finn sailors are saying that the boats supplied are better than the ones they normally sail.

There reportedly have been very few and only minor problems with the Lasers, approx. 15% rejection on the Mistral sailboards with defects and flaws, but the big story is with the Europe. The centerboards and rudders are warped and have bubbles in the fiberglass. They are WAY below Olympic standard. After some heated discussions, the Measurement Committee has decided to allow sailors to use their own blades (provided of course that they measure in properly). It's either that , or no regatta for the Europes. There would be countless YMP (yacht materially prejudiced) problems throughout the race. In a further frustrating development, there is no manufacturer representative on site. There was to be one, perhaps she or he wisely decided to flee Savannah.

The official measurement ends Friday night but might extend into Saturday and Sunday under special circumstances.