In the final lead up to The Olympic Games we move our focus to the 55th edition of the French Olympic Week hosted in Hyères, with 90 nations competing. There are two events taking place: Qualified Nations Regatta for nations with secured spots at The Games allowed to send two participants per class. Then there is the Last Chance Qualifier Regatta where teams from all 10 Olympic classes have their final opportunity to qualify for Paris 2024. At the end of this regatta, 39 spots will be allocated across the 10 classes. This means 3 places per class, except in kiteboarding and iQFOiL where there will be 5 places for both men and women, and 4 places for the mixed double-handed dinghy (470).
The weather conditions on Day 1 were not typical Hyères conditions, with a light breeze for the duration of the races.
Switzerland's Elena Lengwiler dominated Day 1 with three bullets and a second place in the Formula Kite, which will make it difficult to fall out of the top five places, earning a qualifying place for a sailor's country. The Poles top the Kite leaderboard in the men’s division with Maks Zakowski followed by Jan Marciniak, leading the standings after four races.
US windsurfer Noah Lyons rivalled Lengwiler for the performance of the day with his three bullets from three races in the men's iQFOiL, in which seven Olympic places are up for grabs. AIN athlete Anastasiya Valkevich leads the women's windsurfing, from which eight qualification places are available.
The Italians have shown their skill in both the 470 and 49er. With Giacomo Ferrari and Allessandra Dubbini leading the 470 class and Uberto Crivelli Visconti and Giulio Calabro leading the way in the 49er class.
The 49er FX Polish duo of Aleksandra Melzacka and Sandra Jankowiak had a great day on the water with two bullets leaving them in 1st place, followed by Singaporean pair Kimberley Lim and Cecilia Low and Gabriela Czapska and Hanna Rajchert (POL) in third.
Danish pair Natacha Saouma-Pedersen and Mathias Bruun Borreskov seized the initiative with two wins and a third in the Nacra 17 to get one step closer to claiming one of the four places available for the Games.
Only one race each was possible in the men's and women's dinghies - where four Olympic places are available in each - but Oskar Madonich of Ukraine could make himself a very popular winner if he holds onto first place in the ILCA 7. In the women's event, the ILCA 6 standings are led by Marilena Makri.
Results are available for all classes for both events. Stay tuned for an exciting Day 2