Ross MacDonald first represented Canada at the Olympics in the Star Class in 1988 where, alongside his older brother Bruce, he finished sixth. After teaming up with Eric Jespersen in 1991, Ross gained national fame by capturing a bronze medal in the event at the 1992 Summer Olympics, clinching their podium spot in the final race. They then became internationally known by winning the 1994 Star World Championships by one point. The duo fell to ninth at the 1995 edition, but climbed to sixth in 1996, the same year that they placed fourteenth at the Summer Olympics, following two disqualifications in the initial rounds of the tournament.
MacDonald and Jespersen split after the Games, but both continued to compete internationally. The former did not attend the 1997 World Championships, but reemerged in 1998 with Kai Bjorn and finished ninth. The duo was two points shy of winning the title in 1999, settling instead for silver. After earning silver again the following year, they attended the 2000 Summer Olympics, but placed fifth. Thereafter, MacDonald and Bjorn chose different partners and the former returned with Mike Wolfs in 2004, coming in 12th and the World Championships. At that year’s Summer Olympics, they were in bronze medal position after the tenth race, behind Marcelo Ferreira and Torben Grael of Brazil and Pascal Rambeau and Xavier Rohart of France, but moved up the podium to silver by finishing second in the final event, while France placed seventh. Outside of competition, MacDonald runs a sailing school and operates North Sails in Vancouver.
Canada