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The RYA will boycott another Olympics? |
Post Reply | Page 123 8> |
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Colin Simonds
Newbie Joined: 02 Apr 12 Location: London Online Status: Offline Posts: 22 |
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Topic: The RYA will boycott another Olympics? Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 7:56pm |
The RYA will boycott another Olympics If this is not true then why do they insist to keep the power to do it.
After many years of passionate and focussed effort - a number of excellent and some world class UK sailors ( like Chris Law and Rob White and others) won the 1980 olympic trials. All done without any signifcant outside financial support.
Have a look at Yachts and Yachting website under ''The team that never was''.
The RYA council boycotted the 1980 Olympics and ruined the efforts and dreams of that years' athletes. For some it led to yars of depression - for most they left the sport at Olympic level in 1981. The UK team took a decade plus to recover to 1980 levels.
''RYA BOYCOTTS SAILING OLYMPICS'' WAS ALL OVER THE PRESS IN 1980 IT MAY HAPPPEN AGAIN WHILE THE ATHLETICS TEAM AGAIN VOTE AND COMPETE. IT ALMOST HAPPENED AT BEIJING DUE TO HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES AND TIBET ??
Rodney Pattison - Sir Steve Redgrave are examples of those denied the right to try to go the the 1980 Olympics as various sports pulled out. Lord Coe went - well done him - and became a household name and celebrity for life' The RYA went totally lost the plot in 1980 and forgot why they exist (to encourage sailing not BOYCOTT it). (They have done many other better things in recent years).
A core part of the problem was that the RYA - not the athletes - had to make that boycott decision. In Athletics the team had the right to vote - they voted to go and the Athletics Federation were able to say to Thatcher - ''not our call - so leave us alone ''
I have burned inside ever since what the RYA did to the 1980 group (without so much a a chat let alone a consultation or a vote) and I know others have as well in sailing and other teams
Most of the 1980 team are still desperate to find a way to stop the RYA keeping the power to do this again. As yet they refuse to understand or recognise the serious error in 1980 or the future risk issue. If they drop that power and like Athletics did even before 1980 - pass that power to the athletes vote - no one can bully them again.
OK some of us can see it was hard under pressure in 1980 to remember the RYA stated purpose - to support sailing - so WHY do they insist to keep the right to do it again?
To see more about this and please help us get this changed -- see our website and our letter to the RYA from almost all the 1980 Trials winners.
See www.nomoreRYAolympicboycotts.com . We have already 400 plus votes on our petition to the RYA who as yet refuse to even meet their 1980 team to discuss this matter - please join us to protect future Uk Olympic race teams.
Any website or other comments totally welcome - our campign email address is also on the site.
Just imagine if the RYA pull out of the next Olympics under government pressure due to ? - to give a silly suggestion ? burning too many rainforests? But then how silly is that when you remember they pulled out in 1980 due to there being foreign troops in Afghanistan.
YOUR HELP AND COMMENTS NEEDED PLEASE Edited by Colin Simonds - 02 Apr 12 at 11:20pm |
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Colin Simonds
One of 12 Winners of 1980 Olympic trials - but RYA Boycotted the 1980 Games. Founder member 2012 Anti RYA Boycott Group. Petition website www.nomoreRYAolympicboycotts.com |
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SoggyBadger
Really should get out more Joined: 26 Oct 10 Location: The Wild Wood Online Status: Offline Posts: 552 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 8:11pm |
I've been doing my own personal Olympic boycott for decades. F*** em and more fool anyone gullible enough to get sucked into it.
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Best wishes from deep in the woods
SB |
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G.R.F.
Really should get out more Joined: 10 Aug 08 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 4028 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 8:34pm |
This had an effect on my decision not to fall into their 'clutches'. In 1980 I was at the top of my game, and windsurfing had been slated as a discipline in the next games (1984), as this was going on, or shortly after they approached me, back then it was still pretending to be an amateur affair, no adverts, no pro's, any sponsorship money had to go to them to be 'laundered', all very typically British fudged corruption.
I considered it very hard, but what they did to these guys, just rolling over to the body politic and back then Thatcher was not the force she later became, it was shoddy, hypocritical and typical of political scumbags. If it's any consolation, that decision of mine cost them tens of thousands of lost Carlsberg funding which we put to better use and wider spread than they ever would have. There are a lot of good things about the RYA, but their Olympic management isn't one of them imho and certainly not during this period.
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JimC
Really should get out more Joined: 17 May 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 6649 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 9:11pm |
Surely its an utterly pointless exercise since any such rule can simply be changed back again. There are more useful things to be done.
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Colin Simonds
Newbie Joined: 02 Apr 12 Location: London Online Status: Offline Posts: 22 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 9:26pm |
I agree with GRF
Nothing in this criticises the many good things the RYA has done in recent years for the sport mainly under the excellent Rod Carr.
Fair point Jim C
- but pretty sure not correct - I have legall advice otherwsie - if it is written into their constitution it would need a full EGM and full RYA member vote to change back - tough to do in a rush under pressure . If Athletics can do it - and went to 1980 Olympics why can not the RYA copy it.
Soggy Badger
I will never regret the racing and training we did - but - would not want anyone to go where we finished up.
have a look at our www.nomoreRYAolympicboycotts.com site I hope all is explained there
thanks
Colin Simonds Edited by Colin Simonds - 02 Apr 12 at 9:29pm |
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Colin Simonds
One of 12 Winners of 1980 Olympic trials - but RYA Boycotted the 1980 Games. Founder member 2012 Anti RYA Boycott Group. Petition website www.nomoreRYAolympicboycotts.com |
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winging it
Really should get out more Joined: 22 Mar 07 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3958 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 10:14pm |
I doubt that these days the RYA would pull out of any Olympics where they thought they had a chance of winning medals. If a situation were so bad as to merit a boycott, I would imagine it would be a move brought about more by government than governing body, or rather the pressure would come from that source. The RYA is a very different organisation now to how it was then, with many more commercial interests than politcal allegiances.
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the same, but different...
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Colin Simonds
Newbie Joined: 02 Apr 12 Location: London Online Status: Offline Posts: 22 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 10:37pm |
We all doubted it in 1980 but it happened - - why risk it again? lets bolt it down
Yes if the law says you can not go then tough - but in 1980 the government threatened various things such as loss of funding, the press had gone mostly jingoist ans some were screaming that the teams should not go, and the RYA then as now has few racers on the Council - and they folded under pressure.
did you look at our site? do please vote
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Colin Simonds
One of 12 Winners of 1980 Olympic trials - but RYA Boycotted the 1980 Games. Founder member 2012 Anti RYA Boycott Group. Petition website www.nomoreRYAolympicboycotts.com |
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G.R.F.
Really should get out more Joined: 10 Aug 08 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 4028 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 11:06pm |
So, it's 2016, Rio, and Argentina helped by Brazil have just kicked us out of the Falkands after the failure of the new LibLab coalition to act in time to prevent it... They need to make a statement.. You don't think the RYA will not do exactly what they're asked. The problem is, the RYA is there instead of a Government department, so they either toe the particular party line or become one, with all that sea tax and river tax and boat license potential...
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Colin Simonds
Newbie Joined: 02 Apr 12 Location: London Online Status: Offline Posts: 22 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 02 Apr 12 at 11:17pm |
Spot on wish I had thought of this scenario as an example - though somehow I would work in Hugo Chavez to spice it up!!
The RYA are bound to be weak in face of Givernment pressure and must soonest pass the buck - and the decision to the sailors and remove themselves from line of fire.
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Colin Simonds
One of 12 Winners of 1980 Olympic trials - but RYA Boycotted the 1980 Games. Founder member 2012 Anti RYA Boycott Group. Petition website www.nomoreRYAolympicboycotts.com |
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winging it
Really should get out more Joined: 22 Mar 07 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3958 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 03 Apr 12 at 7:41am |
I don't think I actually commited myself either way! I did think of exactly that example, because it is pretty much the most probable that would affect us. The government might well ask for a boycott - as other governments have been doing with regard to our very own Olympics - but my argument is that the RYA is far more likely to respond to financial pressure from its sponsors/investors than it will to government. And of course, it must respond to the wishes of the membership. There are an awful lot of sailors out there who expect the RYA to bend to their views, but don't ever bother to join.
I campaigned in the 470 for the '88, '92 some way towards the '96 Games. Obviously I didn't make it, but had I been successful I would have been devastated had the RYA stopped me from going because of a boycott unless I agreed with the cause. Everyone has their own beliefs. I actually think that in such cases the individual should have the right to choose. I can well imagine several European Court cases taking place should any kind of organisation try to veto the the rights of an individual to take part in a Games, simply because of that organisations political allegiances. An interesting tack to take, I would think. |
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the same, but different...
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