Kaynar heads to Aarhus 2018 spurred on by Olympic dream

Alican Kaynar is chasing the dream of becoming the first Turkish sailor to win an Olympic medal.

He’s appeared at two Olympic Games – London 2012 and Rio 2016 – and is aiming to qualify for Tokyo 2020 at the Hempel Sailing World Championships this August.
 
A top-eight finish will be his aim in Aarhus as he battles in a competitive Finn class to seal his place at the Games.
 

 
Spending almost 200 days training per year, Kaynar has taken time out of studying Industrial Engineering in his home city of Istanbul to focus on qualifying for Tokyo.
 
His greatest achievement so far in his career is the gold medal he won at Round 3 of the 2017 World Cup Series in Hyères, France.
 
He also took a place on the podium in Miami, USA with a bronze medal at Round 2.
 
The World Cup Series Final in Marseille, France saw him just miss out on a podium spot, albeit in agonisingly close fashion.
 
He picked up two race wins during the week but, following an eighth-place finish in the Medal Race, Kaynar ended up level on points with New Zealand’s Andy Maloney, who pipped him for bronze after finishing seventh.
 
Nevertheless, Kaynar’s experience from the World Cup Series will serve him well as he aims to better his 13^th-placed finish in Rio and win his country’s first sailing medal.
 
ABOUT THE HEMPEL SAILING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS AARHUS 2018
Held every four years, the Sailing World Championships is one of the biggest global sailing events in the world and the principal qualification event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Sailing Competition.
 
Hempel Sailing World Championships Aarhus Denmark 2018 will include all 10 Olympic boat classes. Kiteboarding will be added to the programme for the first time. The ambition is to make the championships in Aarhus a unique and spectacular event, where sailing is made more popular and accessible than ever before.
 
The Championships will be held from 30 July to 12 August 2018 and 1,500 sailors from up to 90 nations will race in 1,100 boats.
 
Held simultaneously with the Sailing World Championships in Aarhus, a large festival will provide opportunities visiting families to get out on the water. The event expects to draw 400,000 visitors to Aarhus.
 
More info: www.aarhus2018.com