9th for Noah Lyons in Men's Windsurfer, major advancements for USA as Mistral shakes up scoreboard
by US Sailing Team 3 Aug 23:13 BST
July 28 - August 8, 2024
Noah Lyons (Clearwater, FL) arrives on the beach after being eliminated in the quarter finals. Lyons finished in 9th overall © Sailing Energy / US Sailing Team
Marseille's famous Mistral breeze came back today, bringing both physical and tactical challenges for sailors and breaking the light air monotony. Four classes took to the water for Team USA: Men's Windsurfer, Women's Dinghy, Mixed Dinghy and Mixed Multihull.
With the breeze up, it was an exciting quarter final for Men's Windsurfing athlete Noah Lyons (Clearwater, FL). Swell was a large factor at the start, with Lyons getting caught on a wave next to Switzerland's Elia Colombo and being forced to slow down in order to not surf over the line early. Having been put on the back foot at the beginning of the race, Lyons was unable to secure one of the top two positions that he needed to advance to the semis. He crossed the line in 5th, ending his first Olympic Games in 9th overall.
"I'm feeling happy but hungry," said Lyons. "I'm proud of my results, and I'm proud of what my coaches Juanma and Pedro and I have achieved at this Games, but I'll never be fully satisfied until I bring home a medal. I'm happy and proud but I'm hungry."
"I met my goal of making the medal series at my first Olympic Games," he continued. "Coming back to the beach to see my family and girlfriend with American flags was the most amazing feeling, and I'm so grateful for the community on the US Sailing Team and back home in Clearwater that rallied around me and made this possible."
Elsewhere across the board, the US Sailors took advantage of the strong Mistral breeze and moved up the overall rankings.
With three races on the schedule, it was shaping up to be a big day for Women's Dinghy sailor Erika Reineke (Ft. Lauderdale, FL). Reineke rose to the occasion, getting a great start and managing the left side to clinch a third in the day's first race. Reineke continued her success in the big breeze, hiking hard to a 4th and 7th to finish off the day, landing her in 6th overall for her third day of competition, up from 20th.
Stu McNay (Providence, RI) and Lara Dallman-Weiss (Shoreview, MN) also saw improvement in their scores today. In the day's first race, McNay and Dallman-Weiss won the left on the first beat, rounded in fourth, and were able to hold their place to finish in fourth overall. The pair scored a 13 in the day's second race, moving them up to 9th overall from 18th.
The Mixed Multihulls in the Nacra 17 picked a gorgeous day for their first races, with excitement (and foils) high. Sarah Newberry Moore (Miami, FL) and David Liebenberg (Richmond, CA) opened their event with a 10-16-18 for 15th overall and three more days of regular series racing before the top ten advance to the medal race scheduled for August 7.
Viewers back home can catch the action on NBC's Peacock with archived reruns to follow. For more information on the 13 Team USA athletes competing in the sailing events, on the racing schedule, the broadcast coverage and more, see US Sailing’s Olympics Page.