Goodison gets the call to defend Olympic gold

Paul Goodison will be looking to defend his Laser class crown after he was selected to compete in the Great Britain sailing team for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Goodison, born in Sheffield but now living in Weymouth, Dorset will be part of the team led by Olympic hero Ben Ainslie, a triple gold and silver medallist.

Sailing is the first of the 26 Olympic sports to have officially selected any of its athletes, with the squad revealed yesterday at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich. The 34-year-old Sheffield United fan can’t wait to defend his crown.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He said: “It feels really good to have been selected early – I know it’s 10 months away but for me it’s really important that selection is out of the way so I can start to focus on what I need to do to put myself in the right position to deliver in 10 months’ time.”

Team GB chief de mission Andy Hunt was also quick to praise the standard of the team ahead of next year’s competition.

He said: “This announcement is a key milestone and an exciting and important moment for us – it represents the beginning of the creation of Team GB, our greatest team of approximately 550 athletes.

“Having the first athletes confirmed for Team GB for the London 2012 Olympic Games is fantastic. The 11 sailors are a good mix of experience, including six Olympic medallists, as well as promising Olympic debutants who are World or European medallists in their own right.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Although Goodison has experience at the highest level from previous Olympics, he knows London will be a different kettle of fish.

“This will be my third Olympic Games – it’s going to be very different to the last two but with a home Olympics I’m sure it’s going to be an advantage to be on home waters with a home crowd. We spent a lot of time training out there in Weymouth and, hopefully, this will pay dividends next year.” explained Goodison.

“Winning in China was just an amazing experience – from the lows of finishing fourth in Athens to winning the gold was fantastic. I can only imagine what it would be like to repeat this feat again in Weymouth with my family and friends there on British waters.”