The Rice Report: Marseille Dazzles as Day 5 Unfolds - Olympic Highlights

Mens Dinghy (ILCA-7) - Day 6 - Marseille - Paris2024 Olympic Regatta - August 1, 2024 © World Sail

Men’s Windsurfing: Grae Morris Secures a Medal

Grae Morris (AUS) started off with a rough performance, scoring 13 and DNS (25) in his initial races. However, the 20-year-old Australian rebounded impressively, dropping those poor scores and consistently placing in the top 10, including two race wins. This secured him a spot in the three-rider final, ensuring a medal for Australia. Tom Reuveny (ISR) and Josh Armit (NZL) will battle in the semi-final, joined by top talents like Poland’s Pawel Tarnowski and Italy’s Nicolo Renna. Surprisingly, Germany’s Sebastian Koerdel and France’s Nicolas Goyard missed the top 10 cut.

Women’s Windsurfing: Wilson Poised for Gold

Emma Wilson (GBR), a bronze medalist from Tokyo, has been dominant this week. Her performance guarantees at least another bronze and potentially her first-ever windsurfing gold for Great Britain. Israel’s Sharon Kantor and Italy’s Marta Maggetti are also in the semi-final, while the rest of the top 10 will fight it out in the quarter-final.

Men’s Skiff: Challenging Day on the Water

The Men’s Skiff Medal Race faced two frustrating attempts due to collapsing winds. Diego Botin and Florian Trittel (ESP) initially took the lead, but the race was abandoned as the breeze died. The restart saw the Dutch team of Bart Lambriex and Floris van de Werken dominate until the wind dropped again, leading to another abandonment. Croatia’s Sime and Mihovil Fantela had a challenging race but managed to stay in contention. The Skiff racers are hopeful for better winds on Friday.

Men’s and Women’s Dinghy: Strong Performances from Peru and France

In the ILCA 7, Peru’s Stefano Peschiera led the fleet with consistent top 10 finishes, followed by Australia’s Matt Wearn. In the ILCA 6, France’s Louise Cervera won the opening race, with China’s Min Gu and Olympic medallist Marit Bouwmeester (NED) also performing well. Italy’s Lorenzo Chiavarini struggled and will need to improve to climb from 26th place.

Stay tuned for more updates from the Paris2024 Olympic Regatta as the competition heats up in Marseille!