Aiming for the Olympic games

Max Salminen, a two-time Swedish Olympic sailor, aims towards the Olympic games in Tokyo 2020. To prepare himself in the best possible way, he wants to find out what rudder is the best for him and his Finn. To find out, he teamed up with Chalmers Sports & Technology and SSPAs experts in hydrodynamics and sailing to test different existing rudders. 

In the Olympic sailing in 2012 (London), Max won gold medal in Star boat with Fredrik Lööf. During the Summer Olympics in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, he sailed Finn for the first time in an Olympic Game. In his continuous effort to improve his performance, Max want to maximise his performance, and one example is what rudder should he choose? He definitely had an idea and a feeling of which rudder that was the best but he wants to be sure. He asked Chalmers and SSPA to help him to find out more.

- “Right now I don’t know how much better a certain rudder is. Is there really any difference? If you haven´t tested them, you don’t really know. It will be very interesting to see if Chalmers and SSPA can help me to obtain data on this”, says Max Salminen.

SSPA has made a model of Max´s Finn. On this model, the experts attach test equipment and the rudders. Then they perform the tests in the 260 metres long towing tank, one rudder at the time.

- “We are testing in total seven different rudders and there are very small differences that makes the difference. An optimal rudder should be light and stiff. All rudders must have a minimum weight of 4 kilos, and there is a difference where on the rudder the weight is placed, and how the fibres are aligned in the laminate. Everything is of course not only about the rudder. The next challenge could be to investigate mast and sail”, says Christian Finnsgård, Senior researcher and project manager at SSPA.

- “Almost no sailors pay attention to the rudder, you just use the one that comes with the boat when you by it. One of my competitors produces his own rudder and I would also like to do that”, Max Salminen continues.

Max and his Finn in action

Take a look at this action clip on YouTube, when Max Salminen is sailing in the 2015 Finn Gold Cup Medal Race.

Photos

Max Salminen monitors the preparations before the tests in SSPAs 260 metres long towing tank.
 
Vendela Santén and Max Salminen share their experience in the variations of the rudders. Vendela is one of the researchers and project managers at SSPA. She has participated in the Olympic games in Athens 2004 and in Beijing 2008, and came home with a bronze medal in the 470 class from Athens sailing with Therese Torgersson, whom with she also was World champion in 2004.

Photos: Anders Mikaelsson