Description:
Triple Olympic gold and silver medalist
International Sailing Federation World Sailor of the
Year (1998 and 2002)
British Yachtsman of the Year (2002)
Awarded OBE in New Years Honours List (2005)
Ben's interest in sailing began at an early
age when given a small Optimist sailing dinghy as a gift from his parents. Ben
successfully progressed through this very popular youth class and at the age of
sixteen moved into the laser, which is the class used for the men's
single-handed division of the Olympics.
Ben went on to qualify for Great Britain
and eventually take silver medal in the 1996 Olympics after a very close battle
for Gold. Since the last Games Ben has moved to the top of the Laser fleet,
winning both the World and European titles this year. Ben won the Laser Class
in the Sydney Olympics, when he brilliantly out-manoeuvred Brazilian Robert
Scheidt to take the gold medal.
Ben has since moved to the heavier and more
technical Finn class, in which you must design your own sails, mast and hull
shapes. It is in the Finn division that Ben repeated his Sydney
Olympic triumph with victory in Athens.
He dominated the field and despite his controversial disqualification in
the second race of the competition posting 4 victories, 2 second places, a
third and a fourth - finishing the tournament with 38 points, 13 ahead of
his nearest rival.
In August 2008 Ben secured a gold medal in
his fourth Olympic Games in Beijing. Winning another Gold has cemented him as one
of Britain's greatest ever
Olympians.
Ben is an experienced motivational and
question and answer speaker, and can draw on his success and hard work to the
benefit of many companies. |
