Friends and followers,
I am writing this at crunch time. As you may or may not be aware of, the last couple of months have been somewhat up in the air for me. But all of a sudden everything has come flying back down to earth and I have some very exciting news.
Following some great results in recent regattas, I have now officially team up with Mary Rook to campaign for Rio 2016. We are a very strong team with huge potential. This was demonstrated recently, when in our first official regatta, Mary and I dominated the GBR qualifying series, against a far more nationally supported fleet. We have both been inspired and motivated by the result and are now in a position where we are going to push like hell to make our 2016 Olympic dream a reality.
The up and coming program is essentially dictated to us, as qualification for important milestones begins immediately. In order to realise our potential, Mary and I will and need to do more than the other serious teams around us. This includes more training and more racing than ever. The first major regatta for us is on the other side of the world in Miami, Florida. As I’m sure you will all understand arranging ourselves and the boat to be in Miami for the up and coming regatta is no easy task, both logistically and financially.
Mary and I working tirelessly to make sure logistically we are ready to go, But financially things have been taken a little out of our hands. Despite our great recent form, the RYA who govern the national financial support have communicated that there will be no funding allowance provided for us. We are in a position where we have all the motivation and weapons, but currently not the ammunition to make it work.
I am writing to all of you as a Sailor in need, In need of support to do something amazing. For those that know me well, you will know how I have poured my life into this for many years. I will do everything I can to make this happen, but right now I need a little help from you.
If you can help the dream in anyway, large or small, I would love to hear from you. It really is a case of now or never, and I'm not one to say never.
For more information on myself and the campaign, please visit my website, www.tomphippsracing.co.uk
Thank you all for for continued support, it really is overwhelmingly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Tom Phipps