- Ben Ainslie
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Ben Ainslie in 2009.
Charles Benedict Ainslie, CBE (born 5 February 1977 in Macclesfield) is an English sailor and three-times Olympic gold medalist. He started sailing at the age of 8 and first competed at the age of 10.[1] Ainslie's first international competition was the 1989 Optimist world championships held in Japan where he placed 37th.
The son of Roderick 'Roddy' Ainslie, who captained a boat that took part in the first Whitbread Round The World Race in 1973, he won a gold medal at the World Youth Championships in 1995 and was awarded the title of British Yachtsman of the Year in 1995, 1999, 2000 and 2002. He was elected ISAF World Sailor of the Year in 1998, 2002 and 2008.
Contents
Early life
Ainslie attended Pennington Infant School, Peter Symonds College[2] and Truro School in Cornwall.[3]
Sailing
Olympic success
Olympic medal record Sailing Competitor for 
Great BritainGold 2008 Beijing Finn Gold 2004 Athens Finn Gold 2000 Sydney Laser Silver 1996 Atlanta Laser Ainslie was a gold medalist at the 1993 Laser Radial World Championship, gold medalist at the 1993 Laser Radial European Championship, silver medalist at the 1994 IYRU World Youth Sailing Championship in Marathon, Greece and gold medalist at the 1995 IYRU World Youth Sailing Championship in Hamilton, Bermuda.
Ainslie won silver at the 1996 Olympic Games and gold in the 2000 Summer Olympics in the Laser class. He put on 40 pounds (18 kg) and moved to the larger Finn class for the 2004 Summer Olympics, where he won gold, a feat he repeated in the 2008 competition. He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2001 New Year Honours after his success in Sydney, and was promoted to Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2005 New Year Honours following the Athens Games.[4][5] He was again promoted, to Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2009 New Year Honours, following the Beijing Games.[6]
America's Cup
At the beginning of 2005 he worked in the role of Tactician in the New Zealand based Team New Zealand who were preparing to compete in the challenger selection process to win the right to Challenge for the 32nd America's Cup.
In May 2005 Ainslie took the decision to relinquish the role of tactician and focus on improving his Match Racing skills as helmsman of the 'B' boat used to practice and tune the race boat helmed by Dean Barker.
He is presently skipper on Team Origin.
New Zealand Match Racing Championships
World Match Racing Tour
In December 2010, Ainslie finished in first place in the World Match Racing Tour, and is the 2010 ISAF Match Racing Champion.
References
- ^ "About Ben". www.benainslie.com. http://www.benainslie.com/about. Retrieved 6 November 2011.
- ^ "Ben Ainslie". Sailor Biography. ISAF UK. http://www.sailing.org/bio.asp?ID=GBRCA1. Retrieved 2008-08-17.
- ^ "Olympic Nod for Ainslie". BBC Cornwall Sport. BBC. 2008-01-14. http://www.bbc.co.uk/cornwall/content/articles/2008/01/14/sport_olympicsainslie_feature.shtml. Retrieved 2008-08-17.
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 56070. p. 13. 30 December 2000. Retrieved 2008-08-22.
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 57509. p. 9. 31 December 2004. Retrieved 2008-08-22.
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 58929. p. 7. 31 December 2008.
External links
Categories:- 1977 births
- Living people
- Olympic sailors of Great Britain
- English yacht racers
- Old Symondians
- Old Truronians
- Sailors at the 1996 Summer Olympics
- Sailors at the 2000 Summer Olympics
- Sailors at the 2004 Summer Olympics
- Sailors at the 2008 Summer Olympics
- Olympic gold medalists for Great Britain
- Olympic silver medalists for Great Britain
- People from Macclesfield
- Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
- Olympic medalists in sailing
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