This article was last updated on August 2, 2024
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Sailors Van Aanholt and Duetz win Olympic gold after a nerve-wracking ending
Chaos in sailing final: Van Aanholt and Duetz almost miss out on gold in the ultimate final
Sailors Odile van Aanholt and Annette Duetz have won the gold medal at the Olympic Games, after an insane finish to the decisive medal race.
The Dutch women misjudged the final and thought they were already at the finish, while they still had to sail a lot further. When Van Aanholt and Duetz crossed the line, it was not yet certain who had won.
After a long wait and a lot of uncertainty, it turned out to be enough for the Dutch sailors. They had a two-point lead over the Swedish duo, who took silver after winning the medal race.
Good starting position
In the medal race, the ten best countries from the previous competitions competed against each other for the medals. The final result in the tournament was determined by the sum of all races completed, but double points could be earned in the medal race.
This allowed many countries to compete for a medal, but it was also important to start the last competition with a good starting position.
Van Aanholt and Duetz did that. They were second in the standings, just one point behind surprise ranking leader France.
On the way to gold
There was no problem during the entire match. Van Aanholt and Duetz sailed in the lead and seemed likely to win the medal race – and thus Olympic gold. The duo passed the starting boat and initially thought that was the finishing boat.
They thought they had finished first, but that turned out to be an error in judgment. The finish boat was located somewhere else.
Sudden chaos
Alarm phase two for the Dutch women, who had to speed up again and still have to get to the finish. In the meantime, Sweden, which also had a chance to win Olympic gold, rushed towards the finish line at lightning speed.
Sweden crossed the line first, followed by Italy. Van Aanholt and Duetz barely finished third. And then the math started.
It was only ten minutes after the finish that it became clear that the Dutch women had won the gold medal. They won by two points ahead of Sweden, which had to settle for silver.
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