The 1988 Olympics,[1] saw the introduction of Lechner Division II boards. The Division II class used a 6.5 m sail and were round bottomed boards designed for upwind sailing in light to moderate winds.
Although they were difficult to sail downwind and a technical board to sail upwind, they are still the fastest 370 cm (12 ft) board upwind in up to 8 kn (4 m/s) of breeze. The contest for the Olympic board had been between the Davidson (a Swedish design) and the Lechner built in Austria. The final Olympic rig was available less than a year before the Olympics.
