Irish Olympic Sailing Squad
Finn David Burrows
Name: David Burrows
Date of birth: 11/5/77
Height: 6’ 4”
Weight: 102 kilos
Born: Dublin
Lives: In Portmarnock, and also beside Lake Garda in Italy
Work/study Background: St. Michaels College, UCD, DCU
Sailing background: Started at five or six years of age, beginning at the Broad Meadows in Malahide. Picked for an Irish sailing development team at 14, competing in Laser class
Clubs: Malahide Yacht Club (his home club) and also Howth Yacht Club
Class: Finn (since 1998)
Chief sailing achievements: Finn Youth World Champion in 1998. Two race wins and ninth overall in the Sydney Olympics. Bronze medal, European Championships 2000. Bronze medal, World Championships 2004
Current world ranking: 31 (was out of sailing for eighteen months after Sydney so lost a lot of points)
Best world ranking: Sixth in 2000
Best results this quadrennial: 14th place 2002 World Championships in Athens (qualified Ireland for a place in 2004 Olympics). Seventh place 2003 World Championships in Cadiz. Third place 2004 World Championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Other 2004 results: 10th place in Princess Sofia Trophy in Mallorca. 7th in Olympic Garda Eurolymp, Riva Del Garda
Biggest influence on his life
"It has probably got to be my old man (Richard Burrows). He taught me a lot about sailing and rugby and other things. We get on well. He is very relaxed but gets the job done too. All the time through my studies, work and sailing career as well, we have been trying to plan things out a bit. He has been a big help there, trying to look ahead and see how we direct things best."
His biggest rivals for Olympics
"The man on form at the moment is Ben Ainslie from the UK. The Polish sailor Mateusz Kusznierewicz is going well, as is the Greek, Emilios Papthanasiou there will be a bit of pressure on him for the home event. There¹s also a good French guy called Guillaume Florent."
Of the nine sailors who¹ll be competing in Athens this August, the best hopes for a strong performance seem to lie with 27-year-old David Burrows. Four years ago he impressed greatly during the Finn Class contest in Sydney, winning two out of seven races on his way to an eventual ninth place.
Those two victories were an important taster for Burrows and have done much for his self-belief. So too have a number of good performances in the years since. The net effect is that the Dubliner will head to his third Olympics with a measure of quiet confidence; while he makes no brash promises, he feels that all going well, a medal is possible.
"I want to be within striking distance of the podium," he says. "I think I can be. At the moment I am concentrating on getting myself into the best possible condition for August. Once I’m there it’s just down to what happens that week. But I believe if I can get myself into good shape in all the different areas, then I should be in with a chance of a podium place."
Burrows took some time away from sailing after Sydney to concentrate on his studies in accountancy. In the summer of 2002 PriceWaterhouseCoopers gave him leave to dedicate himself full time to the sport for three months; the result of that was a good 14th in the World Championships in Athens, which earned Ireland an Olympic place.
Confidence boosted by his quick return to top-level sailing, he worked out a deal with his firm. Once he finished his exams he was able to go full time; what’s more, PriceWaterhouseCoopers decided to become his official sponsor, providing the financial backup that was invaluable in enabling him to really work towards Athens 2004. Instead of worrying about funding and finances, Burrows was able to concentrate on the task at hand; namely, working towards becoming one of the best sailors in the world.
Being based near the shores of Lake Garda in Italy is one step towards what he hopes will be a strong performance this summer. Another is his collaboration with Luca Devoti, an Italian who took the Silver medal in Sydney. Devoti is both training partner and coach, providing experience and guidance that may prove crucial.
Last September Burrows showed things were heading in the right direction when he finished seventh in the World Championships in Cadiz in Spain. This February things got even better with an excellent third place in the Finn Gold Cup World Championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Bronze in the Olympic year is an incalculable boost to morale.
Since then he’s been working hard. His regime sees him train morning and afternoon, five days a week, building fitness and honing technique. Time on the water is combined with gym work, cardiovascular exercises, weights sessions and cycling training to ensure he will be at peak fitness on August 14th. Nothing else matters; he sees the races between now and then as just preparation for the Games.
Four years ago, those wins in Sydney showed that he has the necessary ability. This time, he’s older, wiser and more experienced, factors that he will be hoping will give him the consistency he lacked last time out. Ninth then was a solid showing, but his two race victories plus his fine third place in this year’s World Championships show that he has the ability to do more.
Reassuringly, he doesn’t seem to feel under too much pressure in the run-up to the Games. "All you can do is to get yourself into the best possible shape," he says. "After that, it’s all down to what happens in the week that you’re racing."