A slow hot start but a glamour Olympic sailing weekend lies ahead

Marseille’s light winds have played havoc with Olympic sailing TV schedules and the hopes of some sailors, but better weather is due as the French look set for Olympic sailing domination. Andi Robertson reports from the ground in France

It has long been held that the Olympic sailing medallists emerging from the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be the athletes best able to perform across a wide range of the varying wind conditions which are expected to change from day to day in high summer.

The gentle conditions and very warm conditions have meant a big mental challenge. Day 1 for the skiffs was very much about picking a side and staying with the best pressure. The good news is that the breeze should be better from here and a glamour weekend is predicted.

“It was a very patchy day today, very ‘head out of the boat’. These first two days look to be the lightest of the whole regatta. From Tuesday there will be a bit more gradient around, from the SE to about West and quite variable. We should have a decent NW’ly to W’ly for the weekend – it is a bit too early to say, but it will then be a boatspeed regatta for the weekend and hopefully into early next week.” Explained Simon Rowell, the British Sailing Team’s meteorologist.

“One of the nice things about Marseille is it is a very varied location and we are getting that at the moment.”

Double 49er Olympian and past world champion, Sail GP commentator Stevie Morrison is coaching Britain’s kitesurfing representative Ellie Aldridge. He observes, “It is really so hot here but the mood at the regatta is great. But it is so typical of sailing. There has been good breeze and good practice here for days and now it’s light.

“There has been such a lack of pressure gradient anywhere so it has been a slow start. The element of expectation and anticipation is so great for the first time Olympians who think this is going to be the biggest and best event of their career and one race yesterday they were rushing to stick to the TV schedule so did not move the start line.

“But then in Beijng I drifted across the start line barely moving boom wafting about….the Olympics is never quite what you imagine it to be. But it is the same as any other regatta in the sense it is problem solving and a test of the human. Age and experience helps and success is personality driven.”

Morrison adds, “The atmosphere is great and a good number of sailors went up to the opening and there were a good number of sailors among the flag bearers which is great to see. And there is this element of being an event we have to be ready for anything. Come the weekend we will see 15- 16knots from the NW.

“This a European event, everyone has been in and out many time building familiarity unlike Japan where we could not do that. Here it feels like a classic, familiar normal venue. But then it is never normal when the branding us up and you have to go through every two minutes and there are a million rules you have to follow. How you deal with all that as an athlete is key.”

French Olympic sailors set to be home heroes?

Great things are expected of the French team who from the ten Olympic disciplines have at least six very strong medal hopes, some would say eight. The host nation’s Sarah Steyaert and Charline Picon– two thirds of France’s ‘Mama Team’ of Olympic sailing mums – lead the Women’s Skiff class after six races, finishing second in five of them.

With winds so far struggling into double figures, only peaking at 10-11 today, the conditions have been good for the French duo who are renowned for being good in the light. Picon 2016 gold medallist in the RS:X windsurfer and Steyaert – a past ILCA 6 world champion – have maturity and experience on their side which may prove critical though the second half of the skiff event and into the Medal race.

Their powerful Men’s skiff counterparts Erwan Fischer and Clément Pequin, who in February won this year’s world title in breezy Lanzarote, have so far struggled in the lighter winds and lie seventh. Diego Botin and Florian Trittel, fourth in 2020 and this year’s world championship bronze medallists, who are on a high after leading Spain to overall victory in SailGP moved up to third today chasing the young ‘McKiwis’ Isaac McHardie and William McKenzie who won another two races today and are runaway leaders.

But French hopes were given a boost too today as Nico Goyard, one of their best medal hopes, won the first ever iQFOiL Olympic race for the foiling windsurfers, while Team GB’s Emma Wilson led the first Women’s race from start to finish. Finishing second behind Spain’s Pilar Lamadrid Wilson tops the leaderboard.

Aside from their early leaders Picon and Steyaert and Goyard – who is three times world champion in different windsurf classes – France have medal prospects in both kite classes where they have strength and depth across the kiting hotspots of the Med, especially with double world champion Laurianne Nolot.

Singapore’s young Max Maeder is a class apart and considered the out and out favourite in the Men’s Kite but Axel Mazella should medal. Many consider the 470 mixed duo of Camille Lecointre, double Olympic bronze medallist and Jérémie Mion, gold medallist in the 470 at the world championships have a strong chance on their home waters.

Keep up to date with all our Olympic Sailing 2024 coverage.
You can find all the Olympic sailing results at the World Sailing Olympic results page

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