With just a week before the first race in the 2012 RS:X World
Windsurfing Championships in Cadiz, Spain, the buzz is building.
3 or 4 practice races are going off every day with more than
100 boards in each start. There is no time to waste.
Training, tuning, getting your head in the right place.
Nothing is left to chance before this last big effort to win and win big before the London Olympic Regatta
Gaining the psychological advantage here will pay dividends later. And will pay in cold hard cash too
Neil Pryde, the windsurfing legend himself, has stepped up to the plate by putting US $45,000 up as prize money. A big thank you to him for putting his money where his mouth is and supporting this all important championship so magnificently. This is no one off though. Neil has started a trend that will see the class award prize money at other major events in 2013.
No doubt you're all dying to know.... How will the spoils be divided? Well, one thing is for sure. The RS:X women racers stand to win just as much as the guys and rightly so... but before I reveal all, let's just review the RS:X Athlete's Media Guidelines.
With the top riders already full time professionals and more and more devoting their lives to their ultimate goal, it's time to put this part of Olympic sailing on a more professional footing. The media expect it. Sponsors expect it. And the sailors have to respond accordingly
Here's what a sailor's day could look like....
The Yellow Jersey Ceremony is held each day at 1100hrs with the World Champion, the vice world champion and the bronze medalist at the 2011 ISAF World Championship wearing the Yellow, Blue and Red jerseys for the first two days. From then on it will be awarded to the first 3 in the current overall standing. Our intention is to stream this LIVE onto the web
The Post Race Press Conference may include the top 3 or other sailors as decided by the RS:X Media Team. There is a lot riding on this championship. Sailors from 19 countries in the RS:X Men's fleet are battling for the 9 national Olympic qualification places remaining. In the RS:X women's fleet, the odds are not much better. There are 15 countries chasing 7 national Olympic qualification slots so we will take time to feature the sailors doing their best to make the cut
We will stream this LIVE on the web too. If you have any questions, that you would like us to ask please tell us by posting them on the micro-blog on the event website at http://worldwindsurfingchampionships2012.rsxclass.com
In the meantime, go to the 2012 RS:X World Windsurfing Championships Facebook Page and press 'LIKE"
OK... so here's the breakdown of the prize money
Remember that the original amount generously put forward by Neil Pryde was US $50,000. After payment of $5,000 to ISAF in accordance with Regulation 25.12.2b, a total of $45,000 in prize money will be divided equally between Men and Women and awarded as follows:
1st - US $6,500
2nd - US $4,250
3rd - US $3,150
4th - US $2,250
5th - US $1,750
6th - US $1,250
7th - US $1,150
8th - US $850
9th - US $750
10th - US $600
Bottom Line: You've got to be in it to win it... The medal race that is
