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Sails unfurling on bay for world championship
By JON WILSON
© St. Petersburg Times, ST. PETERSBURG -- The new docks at the St. Petersburg Sailing Center bustled Tuesday. In town a day or two early for an international championship regatta, sailors were busy cleaning boats, inspecting equipment and fixing rigging. Two or three languages could be heard around the floating docks. The only thing missing was a bit of a breeze to kick up a practice run. "We haven't been on the water yet," said Heiko Kroeger, a German sailor in town since the weekend. "We're just waiting for the wind." About 85 sailors from a dozen countries are expected for the 2001 World Disabled Sailing Championships, which begin today with boat measurement and classification. The first of nine races starts Friday and continues through Oct. 31. Monday is a "lay day," a break from competition to give the sailors time to rest. Racing will be conducted in one- and three-person boats. "I'm thrilled," said Serge Jorgensen, event chairman. "Sailors are coming together from all over the world. The city just invested about $170,000. To watch them come in and experience a first-class event is tremendous." Jorgensen referred to a Sailing Center renovation project completed Friday. It provided more dock space and better ways to get in and out of boats, and more convenient parking and restrooms for athletes who compete in such events as the Paralympics. The city's Committee to Advocate for Persons with Impairments (CAPI) recommended the project. Money came from fines collected from motorists who park illegally in spaces reserved for handicapped drivers. "I think it's a real feather in our cap," said Wally Dutcher, CAPI chairman. He put the proposal together and designed the layout. Jorgensen has called the new facilities "the best in the world" for disabled sailors. The citizens' patrol that enforces handicapped parking will be honored at a 10:15 a.m. ribbon-cutting today at the new docks. The Sailing Center is at 250 Second Ave. SE. The sailors competing have a variety of disabilities: cerebral palsy, blindness and spina bifida, for example. Some have had strokes; others are amputees or have various degrees of paralysis. All are fierce competitors. Kroeger, 35, is a case in point. He has been sailing on his own since he was 5. His left arm never grew past the elbow. He is a two-time disabled world champion in the 2.4-meter division, and won Paralympics gold last year in Australia. He also won a world championship sailing against able-bodied athletes. A pharmaceutical wholesaler in Kiel, Germany, Kroeger said he had second thoughts about the regatta here after the Sept. 11 attacks. "I thought it might be better to have it at a later date. But then I thought, nothing will change later. Next week, I'm sailing on a lake in Hamburg, near an American embassy. It's dangerous there, too. So I decided to sail here." The attacks did reduce the regatta's size. Australian sailors decided not to come after encountering difficulty booking a return flight, Jorgensen said. The Armenian team canceled because of flight logistics, and groups from India and Nigeria experienced problems getting the necessary visas. But teams from numerous other nations will compete. Among them are contingents from Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Canada, Argentina and South Africa. The first Disabled World Championships was held in 1995, and again during 1997-99. The event is held in non-Olympic/Paralympic years. This year's event will feature the largest number of female skippers, Jorgensen said. "There are three. Usually we barely have one," he said. In addition, there may be up to a half-dozen other female sailors, up from the usual one or two, Jorgensen said. Anyone who wants to meet the athletes has the best chance on race days between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m., or after the boats come in by 2:30 p.m.
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