Paige Railey Update

rerun said:
who is paige railey???

Have you been giving out your password again? :D She is the AMERICAN who just won the Radial Worlds. :D :D When I met her last winter at Clearwater, she introduced me to her training partner at the time, Brendan Casey. :D :D :D Congrats to Brendan for winning the North Americans!
 
no i havnt and she cant have JUST won the radial worlds because they are on at the moment. sorry if i dont know who your americanracers in radials are
 
rerun said:
no i havnt and she cant have JUST won the radial worlds because they are on at the moment. sorry if i dont know who your americanracers in radials are

I mispoke. Paige did not just win the Radial Worlds; she won the International Sailing Federation Worlds--the women's division was sailed in Radials. Here's an article from the US Olympic Committee. http://www.usoc.org/11709_46593.htm The article says "Railey is the number one ranked Laser Radial sailor in the world by the International Sailing Federation and the reigning Laser Radial World Champion."
 
Here's the latest from Paige Railey:

Hey!

So if you looked at the results you can see that I had 3
yellow flags. It was the second to last race when I
recieved my third flag which resulted in me having to
retire from the regatta. It was a horrible feeling! Here I
was in my home country being thrown out of the worlds.

Truthfully, it has been tough lately. First I pull out of
the Holland Regatta, score 18th at Euros, and now I am
thrown out of the Radial Worlds. But these regattas and
time has been quite a learning experience. As my dad has
said to me you cant enjoy your highs unless you've
experienced a low and both my parents agree that you cant
stay on top forever you have to experience a dip to become
a stronger and better sailor. They have been great mentors
for me.

Worlds was tough. I had media scrutiny (the worst I had
ever experienced). I was shocked to see the arcticles that
were written. It seemed that the reporter was more focused
on my mess ups in the sailing rather than the positive
part. Truthfully, I had some great sailing. I was not out
of it at all. The only thing that was killing my scores was
my yellow flags.

I guess I can say that I have never had an obstacle with
the mental part of sailing. It's only been the physical and
the actual sailing part that has given me troubles. I have
a new view on athletes. I used to be the person who would
criticize someone for starting to perform poorly or just
say they don't have it in them, but now that I am going
through it, I get to see a different side. I realized that
we are just human and you can't be perfect all the time,
but it's the great athletes who are able to pull through
times like this. My dad has shared with me struggles and
achievements that he has gone through with his business. I
never thought that I would be able to compare his work with
my sailing, but he goes through the same things. I have
come to admire him for the difficulties and achievements he
has had. So, with his past experiences he has given me a
new strength on how to move forward.

Here's the next step! I'm off to China on the 10th for the
Pre-Olympics. This is purely a test event for the Olympics.
I will be able to sail there to get a feel for the venue. I
will write you later on the link. Also, my goal here will
be to take another step forward with my progression. It's
time for me to have a good regatta, but if things go wrong
again then, I won't let it get me down. I just have to keep
pushing.

Talk to you later!

Paige
 
She certainly writes a good diary. Being at the top of your game must be the hardest place to sit, so much pressure and so many people wanting you to mess up. If she comes out with an olympic medal it will have been well deserved.
 
Hey!

All I can say is China is amazing! I have been here since
the 10th and let me tell you ALOT has happened within such
a short period of time. This body of mine has decided to
tell me that it hates me and it is going to do everything
to make me be miserable. So the second day I get here I get
sick from the food. That put me out for four days. Since I
got so broken down from the stomach bug I decided to catch
a cold. Started off with swollen tonsils and now its turned
into a sinus infection. THEN, I wake up this morning and
have a terrible pain in my back! So the physio has been
working on me today. What else can happen???

On a positive note: IM SAILING MUCH BETTER! We are three
days into our regatta. You should check out the results at:
http://www.2006qdregatta.com/
I am not thinking about the results yet. I am just taking
one race at a time. I dont want to jinx my sailing, but I
have to say that I am very pleased with how its going so
far. It feels uphill compared to how I have sailed before.
There is still many races left so I am going to try to stay
consistent and sail with a positive mind set.

Let me summarize a little about China. The people and town
is incredible. Everyone is so friendly and helpful. I have
felt very welcomed here. The taxi rides here are outrageous
though. We just sit in the back and literally hang on. You
can say that traffic lights, road rules and the lines on
the roads do not exist! Everyone just laughs their fears
away when we are in the car.

I will write more throughout the regatta to say how its
going.

Cheers,

Paige
 
Merrily said:

Apparently, Paige found her groove back in Qingdao! She just had to show up for the medal race and not foul anybody in order to win the gold medal.

Anna Tunicliffe did quite well also; fourth overall and first in the medal race.

Also check out Ben Ainslie in the Finn class; awesome!
 
Yeah her and Ben Ainslie won the regatta before the medal race.

That is a great way to come back into the Finn.
 
Qingdao sounds like a horrible place to sail though. Current stronger than wind, water full of rubbish, a thick fog. What sort of place to hold an olympic regatta?

Well done to Paige though, it appears that the UK sailors really love these conditons though as they were the strongest team over all classes.

The medal race:

Assured of the gold medal going into today’s Medal Race final, Paige RAILEY (USA) was still keen to get off the line and show her form. But, she was just a bit too keen and it wasn’t until RAILEY was some way up the opening windward leg that she realised her error of being on course side (OCS) at the gun and returned to re-cross the line.Even by RAILEY’s demanding standards, she found herself in a position from which it was impossible to recover and went onto finish the race in last position and with it added 20 points to her scoreline.
Behind RAILEY, the battle was for the silver and bronze medals with Jo ALEH (NZL) and Penny CLARKE (GBR) head to head. Assured of the bronze medal, CLARKE’s goal was to outsail ALEH for the silver, but ALEH had a different plan. ALEH knew she just had to finish within one boat of CLARKE to keep the silver and she delivered her goal faultlessly tailing CLARKE throughout the race, to finish in seventh with CLARKE in sixth.
For both ALEH and CLARKE, their performance at the Qingdao International Regatta must rank as career bests. CLARKE who only started campaigning full time this year, has rapidly demonstrated her talent, most recently claiming the bronze medal at the Europeans in Italy.
Victory in today’s Medal Race went to Anna TUNNICLIFFE (USA). TUNNICLIFFE put in some excellent results and claimed the most bullets in the series, but these were interspersed with double-digit results which held her back from the podium places.
Two of China’s three entries in the Laser Radial fleet qualified to the Medal Race, and today they placed second and third, giving Xiaoying SHEN seventh overall and the recent winner of the Laser Radial Worlds, Lijia XU ninth overall.
 
Here's the latest from Paige!

Hey!

FINALLY things came together. I just won the regatta and
let me tell you how amazing it felt. Throughout the regatta
I started to turn back into the old Paige. I was improving
throughout and by the end I felt like I was N'sync with
everything that was happening around me. One of the big
factors that helped me achieve the win was staying
conservative and consistent. I have been working very hard
lately on trying to change my sailing and you could see my
improvements coming through.

The closing ceremony was massive! They had a variety of
shows ranging from traditional Chinease music to present
day. When it was time to hand out the prizes we walked up
and stood on a podium infront of 3,000 people and a live
t.v. show that was broadcasted all over China. I was a bit
nervous you can say, but when my flag was raised and anthem
played everything around me disappeared. All I could think
about was that this was what I was meant to do. Everything
that I have been through, all my ups and downs are all
worth it. Being here has given me a new motivation.

This trip has been very rewarding in many ways. Not only
have I improved in my sailing, but I have also learned a
lot about the Chinease culture and way of life. I have
never met such hard working and disclipined people in my
life. Actually makes me feel a bit lazy! Seriously though,
this has been an experience that will remain with me for
the rest of my life.

Well, whats next!? A LONG NEEDED BREAK! I head home
tommorrow and I get about a month off!

Talk to you later!

Paige
 
Here's the latest: (I win this round JR)
Hello all!

Life has been quite busy since China. I flew home and was looking forward to a much needed break! I hung around my house, went to the beach, vactioned with my boyfriend and caught up with family and friends. I also recieved some very exciting news. I was nominated for my second year in a row as the ISAF Rolex Sailor of the Year!! This was a true shock for me! I couldn't believe my eyes when I opened up the email. You can read about it on www.sailing.org. Just to be nominated a 2nd year in a row and at such a young age, I feel is a huge accomplishment in my sailing career.
I will be attending an awards banquet where the winner will be announced in Finland on November 7th. Just the thought of attending such a prestige banquet is so exciting.

Now I'll tell you how I've been since China which has been a disaster. I came home with some type of stomach bug and went to my doctor for help. I started to feel better so I decided it was time to hit the gym again, but unfortunately my body was not ready for it. I noticed that I was starting to feel ill when Nick was here. It felt like my body was falling apart. I was in and out of the doctor's office and finally my brother ended up taking me to the ER room due to a temperature of 103, infected throat and so on. I'm working on getting better now, but I have a new challenge ahead of me. My pretrial regatta starts this Thursday and I am flying to Rhode Island tomorrow. Some of you may not know where Rhode Island is located but all I can say is it's up in the northeast and it is COLD(especially for this Florida girl!!) A true Florida cracker such as myself up in the cold weather is quite a spectacle! Everything from the foggy breathe to seeing trees without leaves is fascinating everytime. My goal is to put everything aside and focus for just the four days of the event. So, maybe I'm a bit nervous about being weak and underweight, but as my parents have said to me "Nothing comes easy and the true athletes are the ones who can dig deep inside when times are tough and push through it."

You can view the regatta at:
www.ussailing.org

After the pretrials, I'm scheduled to head over to England for some sailing, but I might re-evaluate the program and come home for some rest and slowly ease my way back into sailing but that will be decided during the pretrials.

I will write with updates later on!

Paige
 
Here is the latest:

Hey!

Pretrials is over and I ended up winning the regatta until
I was protested and thrown out of the last race! I am not
happy with being chucked from the race but there is nothing
that I can do about it. I might not agree with the
decision, but I took the situation as a good learning
experience and will try to take my new knowledge and use it
in the future. Eventhough I was unhappy with loosing the
event I can say that I am very satisfied with how I sailed.
I went into the event very ill and praying for light air
and was given the complete opposite. It blew the whole
event and truthfully the first day was very difficult. I
will admit that I was struggling with my physical state. I
found it hard to properly sail my boat, but I never let
myself get discouraged or let my illness get me down. I
decided that I was going to put it all out of my mind and
give 100% on the water, even if that meant I was dead and
could barely walk when I got in. I will say that I pushed
myself to that limit. Back at the house I usually walked
around with a limp due to all of the acid and pain in my
muscles.
With each new day of the event my sailing kept improving.
By the third day I had won all three of the races and with
a good margin. I did not feel that my speed was anything
special, but my tactics is what put me ahead. I have been
working hard on changing my sailing around from how it was
before which was: usually starting at an end and speeding
out to one corner and then heading towards the windward
mark.
When the event concluded I felt very proud of how I was
able to overcome the obstacles that I was faced. I learned
a lot at this event and hopefully it will help me in my
learning process.

Now, I am in England to sail some events and do some
training. My first event is this weekend and I am going to
focus fully on my racing weaknesses. I feel that the events
here will be perfect for working on them.

I will talk to you soon!

Paige
 
Here's another update:
Hello!

Well, I can say that I did horrible this weekend. It was
windy and I was too tired for it. It was great after the
races when I would meet Kaj and he would be laughing at how
the racing went. We pretty much kept a positive attitude
about it.

Each race I was able to get myself up into a good position
on the firt upwind, but then I would wear out before the
race was over. So, instead of making a goal of passing
boats ahead of me I tried to keep as many boats as possible
from passing me! I can say that I have never gone off of a
goal like that!

It was a great learning experience and truthfully a tough
regatta. I was exhausted after each race and dead when the
day was over. It is only a matter of time until my body
heals and I am up and running again, but utnil then I have
to keep pushing.

Now, I am in Weymouth where I will be doing some training
with a friend Laura Baldwin. This coming weekend I will be
sailing another qualifer regatta here. I am hoping that it
goes better than the last one!!!

Cheers!

Paige
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Marlieke de Lange Eaton
401-683-0800

US Sailing Team Member Paige Railey Named ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year

Helsinki, Finland (November 6, 2006) - The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) and Rolex announced US Sailing Team member Paige Railey (Clearwater, Fla.) as winner of the ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Award 2006 today. At an awards ceremony in Helsinki, Finland, Railey was honored for her outstanding sailing achievements between September 1, 2005 and August 31, 2006, when she won a number of major international regattas in the Laser Radial.

This is the second consecutive year that Paige Railey was nominated for the female ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Award. Railey, who is 19 years old, has proven herself as the sailor to beat in the Laser Radial, which was selected two years ago as the new equipment for the Women's One Person Dinghy Olympic event.

With no prior experience of Olympic level sailing, the teenager's meteoric rise to the top of the sport has shocked Railey more than anyone. But her lack of experience proved no barrier to success as she has moved seamlessly from the top of the youth sailing world to the top of the sport at senior level. In 2005, Railey won the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship in Korea and a few months later went on to win the Laser Radial World Championships in Brazil.

Railey opened the 2006 season with victories at the French Olympic Sailing Week and the ISAF World Sailing Games in Austria, although she struggled during the summer at the European and World Championships with some below par performances. However in August she bounced back in fine style, to win a challenging Olympic Test Regatta in Qingdao, China, the venue for the Olympic Sailing Competition in 2008.

Paige Railey commented:

"This comes as a shock, I didn't really think I had the chance to win. I was really excited just to be nominated again. So to win it, I can't tell you how excited I am. It has been an amazing year. Winning the World Championship in Brazil last year, I really didn't expect to win that regatta. It was my first World Championship at the senior level, and when I first got into Olympic sailing I was really stressed about being immersed in that scene. I was told I'd have to work my way up from the bottom, so to get in at the top was a real surprise. This year winning the Olympic Test Regatta in Qingdao was a real high point. I was just coming out of a slump, and then I had a really good event in China.

"I'd like to thank my family and my coach, Kaj Glinkiewicz, because they're pretty much the backbone for my sailing campaign. And thanks to my training partner Ben Paton and to my federation, US SAILING, for all the excellent work they're doing on behalf of sailors like me."

Railey won the award along with Mike Sanderson (NZL), winning skipper of the Volvo Ocean Race. The two winners were each presented with a Rolex timepiece and the marble and silver World Sailor Trophy - a solid marble sphere depicting the world and crowned by five silver spinnakers representing the continents. The ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards dinner took place during the ISAF Annual Conference. The awards presentation was hosted by renowned sailor and sailing commentator Gary Jobson (Annapolis, Md.) and attended by more than 400 hundred guests from 45 nations, including international sailors and prominent personalities from the sailing world. Presenting the Awards were ISAF President of Honor HM King Constantine and Arnaud Boetsch of Rolex.

This is the second time that a USA sailor has been named ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year since the awards were first presented in 1994. In 2000, USA's Mark Reynolds and Magnus Liljedahl won the award after winning gold medals in the Star class at the 2000 Olympic Games and the 2000 Star World Championship, as well as several other major events that year.

For more information on the ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year award and Railey's accomplishments, please visit the ISAF website at www.sailing.org.

The ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year award is not to be confused with US SAILING's Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year award, for which nominations are currently accepted at www.ussailing.org/awards/rolex. These awards are specifically for U.S. sailors and the eligibility period is for the 2006 calendar year.

The US Sailing Team is managed by US SAILING, national governing body of the sport. Headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, US SAILING's mission is to encourage participation and promote excellence in sailing in the U.S. US SAILING offers training and education programs, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including the US Sailing Teams and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Teams. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.

(End)

Marlieke de Lange Eaton
Associate Communications Director
US SAILING
401-683-0800 - Voice-mail
757-228-5642 - Direct Line
401-683-0840 - Fax
757-228-7904 - Home Office Fax
www.ussailing.org
 
News from Paige:

Hey!

About two weeks ago I attended a banquet for being
nominated for the ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year and
it just so happens that I WON! It was a huge shock for me
and I was so excited and honored. Since I won, it meant
that I had to say a speech in front 450 people! I was so
nervous that I just wanted to run away and hide, but I put
all my emotions aside and did it. On my website I have
pictures and my speech posted. Please check it out!
The whole night started off with cocktails and brief
chatting with everyone. We then headed off to the dining
hall where I sat with my date/boyfriend Nick and some very
important officials in ISAF such as the President.
Throughout the night they interviewed athletes, showed
sailing clips and of course announced the winners. To be
recognized for my year of sailing was a true honor. This
year was one of the toughest years for me and to have my
sailing acknowledged in this manner truly meant a lot.
Now, for the present day...I am currently at home training
with Ben, myself, and two LTU girls. The training is going
amazing. We have had varied winds which gives us different
challenges everyday. Currently, I am focusing very hard on
getting myself back into shape and on top of my game. I can
see myself progressing as the days go by which futher
motivates me to keep pushing.
Before I say goodbye, I wanted to send out a big THANK YOU
to all of the people who have supported me along my way of
sailing. To recieve your congratulatory emails and cards
meant a lot!

Cheers,

Paige
 

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