Photo by João Ferreira
After two more races today in Vilamoura at the European Qualification for Tokyo, the two Olympic slots were determined in the women’s ILCA 6 fleet—secured for Israel and Portugal. The fight for the men’s ILCA 7 slots is still heated, but Spain and the Netherlands are the top two contenders after six races.
Shay Kakon of Israel, who sits in 19th overall in the 89-boat fleet, was visibly emotional at the opportunity to go to the Olympic Games still “so young” at the age of 18. Portuguese Carolina João, who secured the other Olympic slot for Portugal, says, “I’m very happy to have achieved the Olympic slot, especially in the middle of the race. I managed to solve the main goal, and now in the finals I have to give my best and try to always go up in the qualification.”
In the women’s ILCA 6 fleet, Denmark’s Anne-Marie Rindom held her lead, winning yet another one of the races today. Marie Barrue of France moved up to second place today with Japanese Manami Doi just four points behind. See full results here.
In the men’s ILCA 7 fleet, there is fierce competition for the podium. Filip Jurišić of Croatia and Great Britain’s Michael Beckett both hold 19 nett points after six races, with Brazil’s Robert Scheidt tight behind with 20 points. See full results here.
Racing will continue tomorrow with two more races scheduled. The fleets will be divided into gold and silver fleets and live streaming of the racing will be available starting tomorrow.