There was absolute chaos in the final of the Olympic women’s skiff sailing race as the winning team miscalculated where the finish line was.
Dutch duo Odile van Aanholt and Annette Duetz won gold in the end, but not before making a dramatic error which could have cost them dearly.
Just metres from the end of the race, the pair somehow made a mistake as to where the finish line was as they began veering off to the right, some distance away from the chequered markers.
And TV commentators were left stunned as they tried to make sense of the events that were unfolding before them at Paris 2024.
“The Netherlands are in the lead,” described one commentator. “United States are coming through in second, but it’s too little, too late. The Netherlands in the lead, taking it in the early stages of this race.”
At this point, the Dutch were heading straight for the win with a sizeable lead and not long to go until the end of the race.
They had fared exceptionally well in the difficult conditions up until that point.
But suddenly, things took a remarkable turn.
“And where are they going?” remarked the commentator suddenly. “Because the finish line is marked on the left hand side! They’re not too sure. I think they think they’ve finished!
“There was some confusion on the course. We had it here and they’ve now had to come back up to the finish. America also making a mistake. And this is huge.
“Sweden has lined up to the finish line. I wasn’t too sure where it was, but the Swedes certainly knew Sweden are now crossing the finish line and they have won the medal race! And for Sweden, that could mean a medal all the way.”
Indeed, it was Sweden who then went on to cross the finish line first as they capitalised on the mistake made by both the Netherlands and also the USA who had been in second place.
But the USA appeared to become confused after seeing the leaders veer off as they too did not head straight to the real end of the course.
In the skiff, the scores from all the races are added together to give the winner so Sweden could not win merely from that race alone.
But it did allow Sweden’s Vilma Bobeck and Rebecca Netzler to seize the silver medal position.
The commentator went on: “What on earth has happened here just before the finish?”
Despite the monumental error, after what must have been an agonising wait for the Dutch pair, the judges calculated that they had in fact managed to hang on to the top spot.
Things could have gone very differently though as the medal race in the skiff also carries double points.
And after a day of Olympic sailing which had also seen the men’s skiff race abandoned twice midway through the race, this rounded off events with yet more drama.
“What unbelievable scenes on the water of Marseille,” said the TV commentator. “This has been an Olympics to remember.
“We have had two medal races abandoned. We have had boats sailing what appears to have been the wrong course for getting where the finish line is thinking that they’ve blown the gold at the last minute, even though they put in a gold medal winning performance.
“They have been there for five minutes in agony, waiting for somebody to tell them the results. And it seems as if it is now relief.”
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News Summary:
- Chaos in Olympic sailing after winning team heads toward wrong finish line in bizarre mistake
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