Burling and Tuke not distracted from their quest for Games gold by Team NZ campaign commitments.
If there were any doubts over how Kiwi 49er pairing Peter Burling and Blair Tuke would cope with balancing their Olympic campaign with their Team New Zealand commitments, they were well and truly allayed this year.
The Olympic silver medallists signed with Emirates Team New Zealand in January as the team sought fresh, young talent to rejuvenate the syndicate following last year's painful America's Cup loss. Burling and Tuke's decision to link up with the Kiwi syndicate midway through another Olympic campaign raised some concerns that their Team New Zealand commitments may distract them from their quest for gold in 2016.
But their impressive run of results this year suggests Burling and Tuke aren't in any danger of taking their eye off the Olympic prize.
The talented pair were a class above in the 49er this year, winning every major event they entered including two World Cup regattas, the European Championships and an Olympic test event in Rio.
Their most impressive win came in their pinnacle event for the year - the world championships in Santander, Spain - where they claimed back-to-back world titles with ruthless efficiency, finishing an incredible 46 points clear.
Having been untouchable all year, Burling and Tuke predictably scooped Yachting New Zealand's sailor of the year award last week for the second straight year.
Having been not quite sure how their Team New Zealand commitments would impact their development in the 49er class, Burling said he is pleased with the way the first year has worked out, but is conscious their juggling abilities are set to be further tested next year.
"It's cool being involved with [Team NZ] - there's a lot more moving parts to an America's Cup campaign so it has been interesting seeing all that side of things. It hasn't really placed too much constraints on our time this year because we are still waiting for a lot of things to be confirmed," said Burling.
Finalising their calendar for next year is proving problematic for the pair as they await the details of the America's Cup World Series to be confirmed. Then there is the matter of whether Team New Zealand will be taking part at all, with speculation that Bermuda has been selected to host the 35th America's Cup bad news for the Kiwi syndicate.
Of the two venues remaining on the shortlist - Bermuda and San Diego - the British Territory was considered Team New Zealand's least preferred option as it is a much smaller market, making it difficult to attract commercial sponsors.
"There's a lot of other stuff going on behind the scenes. We still don't know whether we will survive the next couple of months. Obviously with the venue being named we've got to go back and negotiate with the sponsors and see if we can still make this thing happen. It's still pretty up in the air," said Burling.
While they debrief this season and start planning for the year ahead, Burling and Tuke are taking a break from the 49er and keeping themselves sharp by sailing foiling moths.
Tuke said the change of scenery helped avoid boredom and burnout.
"If we were just sailing the 49er right now we wouldn't be learning as much. Racing these high performance boats you pick up different skills and bits and pieces that we can take back into the 49er.
"It's also just a good way to keep fresh and make sure we're not getting burnout," Tuke said.
Peter Burling and Blair Tuke's wins in 2014
April: Won two ISAF Sailing World Cup regattas (Palma and Hyeres).
July: 49er European Championship in Helsinki.
August: 2014 Rio Olympic Test Event.
September: Topped the podium at the ISAF Sailing World Championships in Santander, Spain to claim back-to-back world titles.