Matthew Sheahan and Steve Ancsell describe how the medals were won in the 49er, Star and Finn classes at the Olympic test event
Listen to the audio highlights of each of the four medal races as Matt and Steve took to the water to describe the action as it happened.
The forecast suggested shifty breezes even in open water, but with the windward mark of the medal race course planted close to the Nothe, the potential for seriously fluctuating breezes was more of a guarantee that spiced up the action for the hundreds of spectators who had gathered ashore.
49er MEDAL RACE
The 49er class was first off. Here, the tight points gap between the top three going into the medal race suggested that this would be a closely fought race between Outteridge/Jensen (AUS), Martinez/Fernandez (ESP) and Burling/Tuke (NZL. If any of these teams were to slip up badly, and there was plenty of opportunity to do so in the tricky shifty breeze, then the Morrison/Rhodes (GBR) were lurking ready to take a medal place.
Audio highlights of the 49er medal race
STAR MEDAL RACE – RACE OF THE DAY
By the time the Star class was due to race the breeze had built slightly, but it was still shifty. Getting in phase with the oscillating breeze would prove to be key and there was one team that never missed a beat.
Robert Scheidt and Bruno Prada had already secured gold during a week that they had dominated from the start. The real race today was on for silver and bronze with three contenders, GBR, IRL and POL, all within easy reach of the medals.
This tightly packed field of ten of the world’s best sailors fought their way around the course in a race that was full of snakes and ladders.
Audio highlights of the Star medal race
FINN MEDAL RACE
Ben Ainslie’s stranglehold on the Finn class continued and saw the British sailor enter the medal race with a guaranteed gold. Yet for the three times gold medallist, winning is the only result he understands.
Behind him the five way tussle for the remaining two medals saw yet more close action and position changes.
Audio highlights of the Finn medal race
If you don’t want to know the final results before you hear the story of how they did it from our vantage point on the race course, look away now, as they say.
If you just can’t wait to find out how today’s racing panned out scroll down.
MEDAL RACE RESULTS – SATURDAY 13 AUG
49er
Gold – Nathan Outteridge/Iain Jensen (AUS)
Silver – Iker Martinez/Xabier Fernandez (ESP)
Bronze – Peter Burling/Blair Tuke (NZL)
Star
Gold – Robert Scheidt and Bruno Prada (BRA)
Silver – Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson (GBR)
Bronze – Meteusz Kusznierewicz and Dominik Zycki (POL)
Finn
Gold – Ben Ainslie (GBR)
Silver – Jonathan Lobert (FRA)
Bronze – Pieter Jan Postma (NED)
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