By Ian Grant.
Ryan Palk has left the warm and friendly environment of his Noosa Waters home to pursue his ambition to gain selection in the Australian Olympic Yachting Team.
He packed his sail bag with all of the warm clothes he could find in preparation to represent Australia in three major Olympic Laser class regattas to be decided on the cold European courses from May 26 to June 27.
As expected Ryan Palk has left nothing to chance in terms of his personal fitness including endless hours of sail training on the Noosa River and rounded off with a physically demanding four hour ocean sail from Mooloolaba to Noosa.
The Queensland Academy of Sport athlete needed the opportunity to further refine his wave steering skills in what proved to be a supreme test of fresh wind sailing in a solid south east breeze gusting to 20 knots.
However apart from enduring a number of spectacular capsizes Ryan Palk and his QAS sail training partners Klade Hauschildt and 2010 Volvo World Youth championship contender Ben Franklin confidently completed the exciting coastal sail.
Ryan Palk will face his first serious test next Wednesday (May 26) when he lines up against an Olympic standard fleet to contest the Delta Lloyd World Cup regatta at Medemblik (Holland) followed by the Laser European championship in Estonia before heading to Germany for the prestigious Kiel Week Olympic Laser title commencing on June 19.
Racing in this highly competitive circuit of international events is an important step forward for the talented Noosa Yacht and Rowing Club skipper who is currently ranked 85th among the world’s top 900.
He is well prepared to test his skill and strict one-design dinghy sailing strategy against the best in the World including Australian Olympian Tom Slingsby.
“I’m told it’s going to be cold in Tallinn (Estonia) where the Baltic Sea is exposed to a cold blast from either Finland or Russia which is the reason behind extra warm sailing clothes in the luggage”. Ryan Palk said.
Locking out the ‘chill factor’ will be a challenge for the warm water sailor and there is no doubt that he will have some thought about the relatively balmy Sunshine Coast winter temperatures when he faces up to the most important challenge in a bid to realise his Olympic dream.
His recent Gold Medal victory in the New South Wales championship combined with the technical and tactical advice he has received from club coach Scott Sinclair and QAS coach Adrian Finglas has given Ryan Palk a solid preparation to test his talent against the best Olympic Laser class skippers in the World including Olympic medallist Paul Goodison of England and multiple World champion Tom Slingsby.
However while Ryan Palk has completed the ‘Hard Yards’ he can expect no favours when he enters the tactical ‘bull ring’ for medal honours at Medemblik Holland on Wednesday.
