Paris2024: Kiwi multihull crew off to flying start as Saunders eyes big day

Micah Wilkinson & Erica Dawson (NZL) in the Mixed Multihull on August 3 in Marseille at the Paris 2024 Olympic Regatta © Robert Deaves / www.robertdeaves.uk

Any doubt about Micah Wilkinson and Erica Dawson's podium potential evaporated on Day 8 of the Olympic sailing competition in a sweltering Marseille as the Kiwi mixed multihull pair enjoyed one of their finest performances as a crew.

Wilkinson and Dawson finished second in two races. They narrowly missed the same spot in the third, leaping over Finland and Argentina into second place on the leaderboard halfway through qualifying.

The perfect mix of aggression and control, the New Zealanders were fast off the start line and sharp around the racecourse. Their performance was so strong that the Italian team of Ruggero Tita and Caterina Banti, rarely challenged over the past few years, had to come from behind in consecutive races to edge out the New Zealanders and take a 10-point advantage after six races.

Argentina's Mateo Majdalani and Eugenia Bosco are third, six points behind Wilkinson and Dawson.

The Kiwis are competing in their second Olympic Games, having finished 12th in Tokyo following a buildup disrupted by injury.

They've had a much steadier lead-in to Paris 2024 and have consistently been among the top five teams in the world for the past 18 months.

Yet, Wilkinson admitted today’s performance had caught even them slightly off guard.

"We weren't expecting to go as well as we did but it was an awesome day for us. We were punchy at the start, and leading in an Olympic race is an unbelievable feeling," he said.

"This is definitely one of the better days Erica and I have had, especially at a really big regatta, and we're stoked to have picked a good time to do it."

Going toe-to-toe with the Italians was a big confidence boost, Wilkinson said.

"Those guys are the class of the fleet, and they've dominated for the last four years - possibly longer. To be racing them and being competitive is fun, because usually, they are long gone in the distance. I'm sure they've got plenty more to give, but hopefully, so do we."

While Wilkinson and Dawson had a day to remember, Tom Saunders admitted it was one he'd rather forget.

Tomorrow is shaping up to be one of the most important sessions of the Olympic cycle for the veteran dinghy sailor, who lost valuable ground on the fleet leaders when he suffered a black flag disqualification in his first race of the day.

Saunders recovered with a 13th-place finish in his second outing and is seventh overall and still in the medal mix.

But with 18 points between him and third-placed Stefano Peschiera (Peru), Saunders knows he needs a good performance in his last two qualifying races to strengthen his medal claim ahead of Tuesday's double-points finale.

"The disqualification put me on the back foot, especially on what I considered to be moving day," Saunders said.

"I need a couple of really good races to put me back in it. Being consistent is key in this class, and if you want to be in the medals, you need to be averaging around the 10 mark per race. Hopefully, I can string a few good scores together and then see where the points are."

Young Greta Pilkington kept improving her overall standing in the women's dinghy event, moving up two places to 28th with keepers of 17 and 21.

Meanwhile, Lukas Walton-Keim and Justina Kitchen survived several pile-ups on the first day of the men's and women's kitefoiling - the discipline's Olympic debut.

"It was fun. Everyone's obviously going really fast, but there's a lot of variation in the results. The wind is making it pretty difficult, but it all adds up to a good day," Walton-Keim said.

"The support and the crowd are pretty overwhelming at times, but on the water, it just feels like a normal event. I made a few mistakes, and there was quite a bit of carnage out there that I managed to avoid. If I can make a few better decisions, I'm confident I can be in the top 10."

Walton-Keim is 14th overall, with a best score of 10 in his opening four races, while Kitchen secured a 9 in her first race of the day and ended it in 15th.

atest standings and results from Day 8 of the Olympic sailing event in Marseille:

Men's dinghy fleet racing(43 boats)
1. Matt Wearn (Aus) 12 2 1 (18) 1 2 10 10 - 38 pts
2. Pavlos Kontides (Cyp) 17 5 (27) 5 10 5 3 7 - 52 pts
3. Stefano Peschiera (Per) 1 14 11 (20) 14 12 4 - 62 pts
7. Tom Saunders (NZ) 11 17 10 7 19 3 (44BFD) 13 - 80 pts

Women's dinghy fleet racing (43 boats)
1. Marit Bouwmeester (Ned) 4 1 2 4 2 3 3 (11) - 19 pts
2. Anne-Marie Rindom (Den) 7 (26) 7 2 8 4 15 4 - 47 pts
3. Maud Jayet (Sui) 16 4 3 8 13 (17) 7 8 - 59 pts
28. Greta Pilkington (NZ) 21 34 (41) 15 33 18 17 21 - 159 pts

Mixed multihull fleet racing (19 boats)
1. Ruggero Tita/Caterina Banti (Ita) 1 1 (2) 1 1 1 - 5 pts
2. Micah Wilkinson/Erica Dawson (NZ) 5 3 (7) 2 2 3 - 15 pts
3. Mateo Majdalani/Eugenia Bosco (Arg) 2 2 5 10 6 6 - 21 pts

Men's kite (20 boards)
1. Toni Vodisek (Slo) 2 (5) 1 3 - 6pts
2. Valentin Bontus (Aut) 1 2 5 (8) - 8 pts
3. Maximilian Maeder (Sgp) 5 1 2 (21DNF) - 8 pts
14. Lukas Walton-Keim (NZ) 12 (18) 14 10 - 36 pts

Women's kite (20 boards)
1. Lauriane Nolot (Fra) 2 1 (12) 2 - 5 pts
2. Eleanor Aldridge (GBR) 1 2 2 3 - 5 pts
3. Daniela Moroz (USA) (7) 3 4 1 - 8 pts
15. Justina Kitchen (NZ) 9 11 (21DNF) 16 - 36 pts

Full results here paris2024.sailing.org/racing/results-centre.