The first day of racing at the 2008 Paralympic Games in Qingdao got off to a slow start. After launching at 1pm the boats soon returned to the shore where they were held, postponed for a couple of hours. Racing finally got underway at 3:30pm when the 6 to 8 knots seabreeze filled in. The tide was running against the wind so the water was very choppy making conditions challenging. It was a very long day with the sailors coming ashore at 6pm.

Weather:
Wind - SW 6 to 8 knots
Temp - 21 to 27'C
Humidity - 51%
Vissability - Very Good, clear sunny skies

2.4mR - One Person Keelboat - AUS Team: Aaron Hill (VIC)

Aaron Hill from Victoria opened the regatta with a 12th and 10th placing him in 10th overnight. Coach Adrian Finglas explained how tough the competition is in this fleet with sailors having campaign for many years and most have been able to do so full time. Aaron works as a Jeweller and has only been racing since 2003 so he is proud to have made it onto the team and to be representing Australia. 

Leader Board:
1st - CAN - 1st, 1st - 2 points
2nd - CAN - 3rd, 2nd - 5 points
3rd - AUS - 2nd, 6th - 8 points

10th - AUS - 12th, 10th - 22 points

SKUD 18 - Two Person Keelboat - AUS Team: Dan Fitzgibbon & Rachael Cox (QLD)

Dan Fitzgibbon and Rachael Cox had a good opening day scoring a 4th and 2nd to place them 3rd overnight just one point off Canada with 5 points. The American Team win with 3 points. Dan & Rachael made a very conservative start in the first race and rounded the top mark in 5th, overtaking the British Team to finish 4th.

"We had a great last run because we held off the English boat" said Dan Fitzgibbon, the helm of the Australian SKUD 18.

Dan and Rachael had a great start at the committee boat end and rounded top mark second which they held to the finish.

"I'm very happy with our performance in the second race" Dan said.

Leader Board:
1st - USA - 2nd, 1st - 3 points
2nd - CAN - 1st, 4th - 5 points
3rd - AUS - 4th, 2nd - 6 points

Sonar - Three Person Keelboat - AUS Team: Colin Harrison, Graeme Martin & Russell Boaden (WA)

After a delay of just over one hour, the Sonar fleet got the racing underway at the 2008 Paralympic Sailing Competition. The Australian Sonar Team from Western Australia includes the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Gold Medallist, Graeme Martin OME. After the first day of racing the team is sitting in 7th place with 12 points after scoring 8th, 4th.

Colin Harrison explained how he felt before the start of the first race, "I felt edgy! I always feel better after the first race but with racing being postponed for a couple of hours the pre-race feelings of anxiety were prolonged."

Colin went onto talk through the racing, "There was good breeze once we finally got racing. We had good clean starts and good speed. We just got one shift wrong in the fist race and lost a lot to finish 8th. Between races we re-focused and managed to sail a really good race to finish 4th. I'm very happy to have come back after an ordinary first race."  

Leader Board:
1st - FRA - 4th, 1st - 5 points
2nd - GRE - 2nd, 5th - 7 points
3rd - NOR - 6th, 2nd - 8 points

7th - AUS - 8th, 4th - 12 points

Australian Paralympic Team Insights:

"I always strive to do the best that I can do, whatever the conditions or situation, I just hang in and work as hard as I can so that I know that I tried as hard as I could so as not to feel like I let myself or the team down." Colin Harrison, Sonar helmsman.

Paralympic Games Beijing 2008

Australian 2.4mR Sailor, Aaron Hill

Aaron Hill grew up surrounded by sailing. His dad ran the local junior sailing club which, as a youngster, shaped his life to come. Having sailed his whole life, at 23 he is aiming to win gold at the Beijing Paralympic Games.

He first represented Australia in 2003 and has since achieved encouraging results, finishing third at the 2007 National Championships and tenth at 2006 IFDS World Championships in Perth.

Aaron had his leg amputated above the knee in a bid to save his life from cancer. But despite the loss of his leg, Aaron lives life to the maximum, enjoying skydiving, motorbike riding, snowboarding and going on a canyon swing over a New Zealand gorge.

In spite of his sporting achievements, his proudest moment was when he learnt his wife was pregnant and that he would be a father. With exciting news like that, Beijing isn’t the only thing Aaron is preparing for.

SKUD 18 -

Australian SKUD 18 Team

Dan Fitzgibbon and Rachael Cox (QLD) – Two-Person Keelboat: SKUD

A Queensland boy, it’s not surprising that sailor Daniel Fitzgibbon feels at one with the water. At 30 years old, he has raced sailboats his entire life and continues to do so, despite a sailing accident that left him a quadriplegic.

After his accident, Daniel returned to his passion and won the 2004 Disabled Sailing World Championship in his class, showing his drive and determination to succeed. He went on to be named the 2004 Australian Sailor of the Year with a Disability and the 2004 Queensland Sailor of the Year.

Rachael first represented Australia at the IFDS World Championships in 2006 in the 2.4mR Class and from then on was determined to sail in as many international events as possible. Later that year, she went on to win a silver medal at the FESPIC Games in Kuala Lumpur in the 2.3 single person Access Class.

In Sept 2007 Rachael teamed up with Daniel Fitzgibbon in the 2-person SKUD Class, to come 5th at the IFDS World Championships in Rochester, New York. Having only started sailing in 2001 and already owning a Silver medal, Rachael is well on her way to Paralympic glory.

Sonar - Three Person Keelboat

Australian Sonar Team - Colin Harrison, Graeme Martin, Russell Boaden (WA)

Colin Harrison was introduced to sailing as a teenager whilst attending a youth camp. Colin’s right arm was amputated after several operations and a course of radiotherapy to try and cure him from cancer. This dramatically changed his life but he was still able to continue sailing as went on to compete at the 2004 Athens Paralympics were he and his team mates finished 5th.

At the IFDS World Championships in Perth in 2006 the team finished 4th. Colin then teamed up with Graeme & Russell for the 2007 IFDS World Championships in New York where they finished 8th and qualified for the 2008 Paralympics.

Graeme Martin is a Fire fighter turned Paralympic gold medallist.  Graeme is a tenacious, strong-willed individual. Working as a fire officer at a blaze in 1995, Graeme was buried under a burning wall that exploded and fell on top of him. He was trapped under flaming bricks for approximately 20 minutes, resulting in his left leg being burnt off. He also suffered major burns to the rest of his body, a broken back and damage to his left lung.

With this behind him, Graeme is now a Paralympic sailor and at the Sydney 2000 Paralympics, he won gold. As well as this, receiving his Order of Australia medal was one of the proudest moments in his life.

Russell Boaden loves a good challenge. With his sites set on the Beijing Paralympic Games and the World Titles, he has his work cut out for him. He injured his brachial after a motorbike accident. Despite this, he is quite the sportsman racing sailboats, golf, darts, badminton, pool, snooker and table tennis, rivalling anyone who takes him on. A great quality to have when competing for Paralympic Gold.

Laura Baldwin, Yachting Australia,

Paralympic Games Beijing 2008

Olympic Sailing fotos:

Last Updated ( Monday, 08 September 2008 )