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Olympic Results Archive Equipment Used at 2008 Olympics Olympic Medallists - By Nation Olympic Medallists - By Year

At the end of 1972, the International Yacht Racing Union (I.Y.R.U.), the world governing body for the sport of sailing, selected the 470 Class for the double-handed dinghy event open to both men and women sailors for the 1976 Olympic Games of Montreal (Canada).

Almost 60 boats took part in the first pre-Olympic regatta organised in 1975 at the same venue as the Olympic regatta in Kingston. The winners were the French mixed crew Jean-François and Claire Fountaine. One year later, Frank Hubner and Harro Bode, from the former Federal Republic of Germany, won the first 470 Olympic regatta in which 28 nations competed.

The I.Y.R.U. renewed the 470 Class as an open event for the Olympic Games of Moscow (former USSR) in 1980 and Los Angeles (USA) in 1984, and then decided at the end of 1984 to split the open event in two, one dedicated to the men crews and one dedicated to the women crews, for the 1988 Olympic Games of Seoul (South Korea).

Since that time, both men and women 470 Class Olympic events have been renewed every four years by the I.Y.R.U. and then its successor, the International Sailing Federation (ISAF). These two 470 Class events will be part of the Olympic regatta of the 2012 Olympic Games of London, to be sailed in Weymouth (Great Britain).

Spain with 4 Gold medals and 2 Silver medals has been the most successful nation before Australia (4 Gold and 1 Bronze) and USA (2 Gold, 4 Silver and 2 Bronze).

Only one sailor, Theresa Zabell from Spain, has succeeded in winning two Gold medals (in 1992 and 1996) with two different crew members.

Four crews have succeeded in winning two medals each:

• Thierry Peponnet and Luc Pillot (France): 1 Gold (1988) and 1 Bronze (1984)
• Nick Rogers and Joe Glanfield (Great Britain): 2 Silver (2004 and 2008)
• Tynou and Toomas Tyniste (former USSR and then Estonia): 1 Silver (1988) and 1 Bronze (1992)
•  Ruslana Taran and Olena Pakholchik (Ukraine): 2 Bronze (1996 and 2000)

The following sailors have won multiple medals with different crew members:

• Jennifer J Isler (USA): 1 Silver (2000) and 1 Bronze (1992)
• Kevin Burnham (USA): 1 Gold (2004) and 1 Silver (1992)
• Paul Foester (USA): 1 Gold (2004) and 1 Silver (2000)

Since 1988, Victor Kovalenko (Australia), well-known as the “Medal-maker”, has contributed to 5 Gold medals and 3 Bronze medals won by crews from the former USSR, Ukraine and Australia he has successively coached.

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Published Date: 20/01/2010