In 1949, the Finnish Yachting Association started a design competition for the Helsinki (1952) Olympics. Rickard Sarby was the one who answered the call, he designed and then actually built the FINN but it was rejected by the committee.

Though the design was rejected by the association , it became instantly popular amongst the sailors. More FINNs were made and on water the boat use to beat other designed boats almost everytime . So, appearing in Helsinki in 1952, the FINN earned its first Olympics just like the sailors themselves, by proving to be the best..

Design Changes
Although the Finn hull has changed little since 1949, there has been other developments in controlling the sails. The original spars were made of wood until the late 60’s and early 70’s when there was a slow change to Aluminum masts. Aluminum is significantly more flexible and gives more control over sail shape.

It became common place after the 1972 Olympics in Kiel when they were first supplied to Olympic sailors. Recently, carbon fiber masts have become common place in competitive Finn fleets. The sails too have gone through revolution and are now commonly made of Kevlar.

Few tips for Boat Handling – Tacking :-

-Heeling the Finn to leeward helps steer it around a leeward mark.
-When tacking, steer with the tiller behind you on completing a tack.
-Do not switch tiller and sheet hands during a tack until you are on the new weather rail.
-Tacking in heavy air, keep the tiller behind your back until you are fully hiked on the new weather rail. Switch hands only when fully hiked.
-Use your tiller hand, not your teeth, to gather up the main sheet when trimming.
-Steering with the tiller and main sheet in one hand frees the other hand for the sail controls.
-Heeling to windward upwind in flat water and light to moderate air works well but takes lots of practice and concentration.
-Watch where you are steering! And be aware of issues like an anchor rode for racing marks.
-The faster the Finn is going downwind, the easier it is to gybe in strong winds. With the bow of the Finn in the deepest part of the wave trough, you will be going maximum speed.

At the Olympics -

The sailing event of the 29th Olympic Games will be held at Qingdao Olympic Sailing Center from August 9-21, 2008.
Log on to – http://en.beijing2008.cn/sports/sailing/index.shtml

Specifications Under Current Rules :-

Number of crew – 1
LWL – 14 ft
LOA – 4.5 m 14 ft 9in
Beam – 1.51 m 4 ft 10in
Hull weight – 140kgs 319 lb
Sail Area – 10 m². 115 sq ft
rig type – Cat.

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