Stuart Bithell sailing for success at the Olympics

Stuart Bithell with the Skandia Team GBR M5019

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Stuart Bithell will be sailing to represent Great Britain at the 2012 Olympic Games in August.

At the young age of seven, Mr Bithell learned to sail at Hollingworth Lake with his father. Since then he has been heavily involved with the Lake and the sport, beginning to compete there when he was only 12 and even going on to become an instructor at Hollingworth Lake Water Activity Centre.

Mr Bithells passion for sailing runs is in his family, he said: “My parents were keen sailors and as members of the Hollingworth Lake Sailing Club they introduced me to the sport when I was seven, I loved it! The rest, as they say, is history.”

Mr Bithell spoke of what Hollingworth Lake meant to him whilst growing up. He said: “Looking back, Hollingworth Lake was a great place to go and have fun on the water. For me, it was a place which was slightly different and I used to spend half my time in the water messing around.

"The friendliness of the club meant it was easy to get into some of the racing and as the years went on it was this that I became fully hooked on.

"The lake itself is in a beautiful setting, with hills in the background and fantastic restaurants nearby.

"I owe a lot to the Lake and the sailing club now, because they have moulded some of my sailing skills to be the best in the world.”

He added: “There is a fantastic opportunity at Hollingworth Lake for anyone who wants to try something slightly new. The water activity centre is the best around and can introduce you to many water sports, as well as other outdoor sports.

"I think the local community realise its unique facilities and take advantage of it, but there is opportunity for more involvement, I know there could be more developing little sailors who want to join the sailing club, who will have learnt the basics at the water activity centre. I advise everyone to get involved!”

As part of the Mens 470 sailing duo, Mr Bithell has teamed up with Luke Patience. They have been competing as a team since 2009 and since this date, the duo has been an instant success, winning a silver medal after competing together for just two weeks. Since, they have seen a steady rise in their International Sailing Federation (ISAF) world rankings. Other accomplishments which they boast include winning silver at the 2011 Worlds in Perth, Australia and silver at the 2011 Europeans in Helskinki, Finland.

Mr Bithell discussed their preparation for the Olympics, he said: “Training is going well for August; we had our final regatta last week in Weymouth, where we took silver.

"With our ramped up program and plenty of hours on the water, we will be gunning for gold in seven weeks.”

The 470 is recognised as one of the most competitive of the Olympic dinghy classes. Mr Bithell said: “To have been selected feels amazing. Luke and I had a hard battle against the world champions and Olympic medallists for the one spot available to Team Great Britain. I am thrilled about the opportunity to represent Rochdale and the whole country.”