match up against the best yachtsmen in the match racing business, but the 28-year-old said that it is not his desire to take it up full time.

"The match racing circuit I'm in no hurry to do at this point,'' said Bromby, who placed sixth overall in the Omega Gold Cup. "If we can't win the Omega Gold Cup here in Bermuda I can't see myself jumping into it. We have to do that (win) before going on and competing somewhere else.

"However, what I enjoy about the Island hosting the match racing is that it gives me a chance to test my mettle against the top sailors in the world.'' What Bromby would like to do is concentrate his efforts on sailing in the Olympic Star Class and is gearing his preparations for fine tuning his handling of the two-man boat along with crew Lee White. White assisted Bromby along with Penny Simmons and Dennis Correia last week where the International One Designs were used.

Said Bromby: "My goal four years ago was to win an Olympic gold medal not the match racing circuit and that remains.

"We didn't do that well in Barcelona, so there is still a lot to be done.'' There is hope that the success garnered at the Omega regatta will open a passage to corporate sponsorship, but for now the recently married Somerset resident says it is time for rest and relaxation.

"I think that we can use what happened this week to hammer home the point that we can compete with the best and hopefully it will open the eyes of sponsors.

"It's probably the first time Bermudians have seen Peter Bromby stretched to the limit.'' Bromby was referring to his quarter-final series against eventual champion Russell Coutts of New Zealand, which went to five races before the latter emerged victorious 3-2.

A member of the Kiwi's crew even commented that the pressure in that match was greater than that which they came up against in the final where Coutts came from behind to defeat American Paul Cayard 3-2.

"It was very tough racing against him, probably our hardest day out there,'' said bowman Peter Evans. "If he could get on the (match racing) circuit I'm sure he would do well although it might take a while to get used to the other boats.'' Said Warwick Fluery, Coutts' mainsail trimmer: "He obviously showed that he has the ability and is quite a talent, but he needs to learn a bit more about the rules and their interpretations.'' As for sponsorship, Fluery noted that the circuit is not terribly expensive, with several events supplying airfare, accommodation and the like. He also said that Coutts, ranked second on the Omega Match Racing list, does not have a sponsor as such at present.

Still Bromby was unmoved, saying that he is firmly focussed on sailing the Stars and is just awaiting confirmation of the boats as a part of the next Olympics -- due next month when the list of events is released.

One thing hindering Bromby is the fact that there are currently none of the craft on the Island, which makes preparation difficult.

"It's something that we're working on.

"We can't afford to buy a top-of-the-line boat because of the expense, so the best we'll probably do is to bring in an old model just to have something to practise in.'' Next up for the man that has been the rage of the local sailing scene since the late 1980s is the prestigious Bacardi Cup held in Florida for Star Class boats.

Bromby has gone from placing 42th in 1990 and 15th in '91 to seventh this year, that after suffering a breakdown during the final race when he and crew Paul Fisher had entered the day in contention for a top placing.

FOCUSSED -- Bermuda's Peter Bromby has his sights on an Olympic Star Class gold medal. Then he can think about getting more serious about full-stime match racing, despite the past week's success in the Omega Gold Cup.