Paris Olympics medal race is dramatically ABANDONED due to weather conditions… as BBC commentators admit they’ve ‘never seen anything like it’
- The men’s skiff medal race was cancelled on Thursday due to a changing wind
- Race officials are investigating whether they can hold the race in another part of the bay
- Team GB duo James Peters and Fynn Sterritt finished sixth but will start again
An Olympic medal race involving two Team GB hopefuls was called off on Thursday afternoon due to wind conditions off the coast of Marseille.
The men’s skiff medal race was temporarily postponed due to changing wind conditions at the end of the first leg, forcing race officials to find a solution quickly.
British duo James Peters and Fynn Sterritt finished sixth in the race, having started seventh at the end of the Opening Series.
They could benefit from the shutdown, as it means the race will have to start all over again. Race directors are looking at moving the race to another part of the bay.
The BBC commentary team claimed in shock that they had ‘never seen anything like it’.
The men’s skiff medal race was temporarily cancelled on Thursday afternoon due to wind
James Peters and Fynn Sterritt were in sixth place, but the race will have to start again
It gives the British duo the chance to make another great start and maintain it.
Peters and Sterritt had already started the race in first place, before the Croatian, Spanish and New Zealand teams built up a lead.
When the race was stopped, the Uruguayan boats of Hernan Umpierre and Fernando Diz were leading
Team GB need an exceptional result in the medal race and other duos need to fail to get on the podium.
Teams carry their existing points into the final, with the medal race worth double that. Those scores are combined to determine their total score, and the team with the lowest total wins.
The Spanish duo Diego Botin and Florian Trittel started the medal race as leaders in the rankings.
More to follow.