BBC SPORT | Special Events | 2001 | MacArthur in the Mondial

Will Great Britain ever be able to put all its best sailing talent all on one boat, asks BBC Sailing Commentator Richard Simmonds?

Imagine Ellen MacArthur and Britain's three Olympic Gold Medallists Shirley Robertson, Ben Ainslie and Iain Percy sailing together.

The throw in Mike Golding, who delivered such a comeback in the Vendee Globe, and Adrian Stead, Great Britain's best performing skipper in the 1999 Admirals Cup and winner of the French Tour Voile.

Surely if one could put this team in a boat together Britain would have a sport where we would never be off the podiums at the big events?

Unfortunately, it is not that simple.

Sailing is a sport with many disciplines.

Just because you are world class in one does not mean that you would shine in another. Compare it to athletics.

The Cutty Sark sails off the French coast of Brittany
Tall order: Sailing one of these....
A 100m sprinter lives his live to be the fastest human machine over the distance.

In sailing the sprinter would be a 49er sailor - racing the newest most exciting Olympic Class over short, intense courses.

Neither the 100m sprinter or the 49er sailor can necessarily transfer their skills throughout their respective spots.

In sailing the qualities required to finish second in the three month Vendee Globe are very different to those needed to secure Olympic Gold where a single race rarely lasts more than an hour.

Ellen MacArthur and Shirley Robertson are very different sailing athletes and neither could just step into the others shoes and expect glory.

In addition to the skill transfers , winning sailors are single-minded personalities.

A 49er class race at the 2000 Olympics
...Is very different to one of these.
I remember an observation made by past Olympic Medallist Jo Richards, who was also one of the key designers for the British Americas Cup syndicate.

She said there is a fine line between the essential confidence and self-belief needed to win at the highest level, and arrogance.

Put that much single-mindedness on a boat and there is a high chance of fireworks.

In the Vendee Globe, Ellen was alone for day after day and in control of her every move.

This year we will discover if she can make the transition from the most extreme and lonely discipline in sailing to becoming a team player in the Challenge Mondial and a team leader in July's EDS Atlantic Challenge.

If 2001 ends with MacArthur a vital component of two successful campaigns she may be on the road to sailing success that crosses the disciplines of the sport.

And if there is anyone who could just break convention and put the biggest names in one boat and make it work, it could be Ellen.

She has already earnt enormous respect throughout the sport and proven that anything is possible, as long as you want it badly enough.