From the first day when the Rio games started, the weather has been a decisive and fluctuating factor that has affected the schedule of the sailing races. From the first day of light breeze to the rains and stormy weather conditions that threatened to put a stop to the races for good, the authorities have had to toggle around and manage the races in varying wind and rain conditions.

The first two weeks of the initial races were concluded well at the end. This week, as the races reached their final stage, there was a let down by the wind on 17th August.

The finals of 470 men and women’s races had to be held off as there was no wind in the air. That made the medal race day a bumper one with four finals to be held back to back in the 470 and 49er category races. For the women’s team it was a matter of prolonging their wait. Miho Yoshioka and Al Kondo from Japan stated that they hoped that the second day the weather would hold and they would get an opportunity to put in their best.

On the other hand, participants Saskia Clark and Hannah Mills, representing Plain Sailing, were able to relax and sunbathe on the extra day off. Though they did relax, but the thought of holding off after working hard to acquire the points and coming close to standing on the podium is nerve wracking.

The finalists for the 470 Men category were also impatient to hold off their oars till their turn comes on Thursday. Dave Hughes and Stu McNay from US were coming in fourth position overall. They stated that they were excited about the medal races, and though it would be impossible for them to gain higher positions than forth, the extra day off only built their excitement for the final race.