Three nippers to head to Qingdao

Young sailors get to experience the Olympics as part of the BOA's Britain's Olympic Ambition 2012 program

Three of Britain most promising sailors will get the chance to savour the experience of an Olympic Games in full flow when they fly to China as part of the British Olympic Association’s (BOA) ‘Britain’s Olympic Ambition 2012’ programme today .

49er helm Dave Evans from Cardiff, Laser sailor Eifion Mon from Anglesey and Hayling Island’s Frances Peters, who currently helms a 29er, were all nominated by Royal Yachting Association (RYA) Olympic Development Squad managers for the innovative BOA initiative.

Designed to enhance athlete medal success at the London 2012 Olympic Games by providing talented potential team members with an opportunity to experience an Olympic Games, athletes from 33 disciplines will spend seven days in Macau and Beijing during Beijing 2008.

The programme’s focus is based around providing sports specific event exposure and to replicate, as closely as possible, an athlete’s overall Olympic experience.

Having achieved a career best finish of 16th at the 49er World Championships sailing with Alex Hopson in Melbourne at the start of the year, Evans, 22, is now campaigning with double Olympic medallist Simon Hiscocks and the pair finished an impressive fourth in their debut Olympic Classes regatta together at Hyeres in April.

“Simon’s taught me that the single most important thing in an Olympic campaign is experience,” Evans said. “If you can’t be there competing then the next best thing is to be able to observe, so I hope that the experience of being out there with the team will help me take that extra step forward and be ready for 2012.”

Peters, 17, has enjoyed an awesome few months with crew Claire Lasko, the pair romping to girls’ 29er gold at the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championships with a race to spare in Denmark last month having also been crowned RYA Youth National Champions in April.

She said: “When I found out I’d been selected to take part I was really shocked. I just thought ‘wow’, and what an amazing experience it would be. How many people get the opportunity to have such an insight into the Olympic Games? I’ve really no idea what to expect from being in China, but I’m sure I will learn so much from it and that the experience will be really inspirational.”

Mon has enjoyed a fruitful 12 months on the waves, the 18-year-old having the honour of being promoted to the RYA Olympic Development Squad alongside elder brother, Dyfrig, last autumn before finishing a creditable 56th at his first ever Senior Laser Standard World Championships in Australia at the start of the year.

He said: I’m going there with my eyes completely wide open to get as much out of the experience as I possibly can. I don’t think anything can really prepare you for the scale of an event like that. I think it is important, and a great opportunity, for young athletes such as myself to be given an experience of what an Olympic Games is really like so early in our careers and I can’t wait to get out to China to take it all in.”

While there, athletes will visit the Team GB preparation camp in Macau, the Olympic Village and the Athletes’ Lodge. They will also have a press conference fronted by their mentors including Sydney 2000 gold medallist Denise Lewis. In addition participants will be given the opportunity to watch two competition sessions for their specific discipline.

RYA Olympic Development Squad coach, Steve Lovegrove, who is accompanying the sailors to the Far East, said: “We know that athletes are far more likely to succeed at an Olympic Games if they’ve experienced one previously, so this is a unique opportunity for the sailors and myself to get the inside track and find out how the team focuses on maximising its winning chances at the world’s biggest sporting event.”

Simon Clegg, Team GB Chef de Mission for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, added: “This programme is unique worldwide and is expected to provide a real competitive edge to the participants.”