Olympic sailing: "Yeah, yeah, we've got the ticket!"

The DSV fleet will start the Olympic test regatta off Rio de Janeiro in August with seven teams. The Olympic Sailing Committee (OSA) and the Presidium expressed their confidence in the maximum possible number of their top athletes. Only the Finn Dinghy, Laser Radial and RS:X Women's Surfing disciplines remain unfilled for the time being, as the performances here were not yet sufficient in international comparison. However, the young Finn Dinghy and Laser Radial athletes still have a year to turn the tide in their favour with a view to the still possible Olympic participation.

The success-hungry Sailing Team Germany will be led by two-time German Sailor of the Year and active spokesman Philipp Buhl from Sonthofen at the Olympic dress rehearsal in the Olympic area, which is controversial due to its heavy pollution. The Laser helmsman opened the season in style with his World Cup victory off Miami at the start of the year and another win at the Spanish classic Trofeo Princesa Sofía, but suffered a minor setback at the World Cup off Hyères with 15th place. World Cup bronze medallists Erik Heil and Thomas Plößel will also be full of hope going into their 49er series after a recent upswing.

In addition, RS:X surfer Toni Wilhelm - fourth at the 2012 Olympics from Dogern - as well as the 49er FX sailors Tina Lutz/Susann Beucke and the 470 men Ferdinand Gerz/Oliver Szymanski confidently cleared the qualification hurdles for the Olympic test regatta. Paul Kohlhoff and Carolina Werner from Kiel achieved a precision landing. The young team secured their pre-Olympics ticket at the last minute with tenth place in the World Cup off Hyères. The 470 women's crew Annika Bochmann and Marlene Steinherr were also included in the line-up. Although the Berlin duo only met part of the qualification criteria, they have recently demonstrated a clear upward trend in form with two top ten finishes in major international regattas. After the decision, their Facebook page read: "We have a ticket for the pre-Olympic Games. Yeah, yeah!"