Leader Wearn forced to wait again for sailing medal

Australian leader Matt Wearn and the rest of the men's dinghy field must wait another day to decide their medals.

Their final round was put on hold for the second consecutive day in Marseille because of the conditions.

Wearn, the defending Olympic champion and reigning world No.1, is guaranteed a silver medal and is in the box seat for the gold.

He has a 14-point lead over Cypriot Pavlos Kontides and seventh or better in the medal race, or Kontides finishing no higher than fourth, will secure Wearn another gold.

Organisers aim to run the final on Wednesday 1310 local time (2110 AEST) to decide the event.

Wearn is seeking to become the first back-to-back Olympic champion in his event and continue Australia's stretch of gold following Tom Slingsby (2012), Tom Burton (2016) and his own glory in Tokyo three years ago.

“The girls tried to go out and get something done, but they decided it just wasn't enough,” Wearn said after the women’s dinghy medal race was also postponed. 

“Waiting around on the on the beach isn't fantastic, but it's just what you've got to do.”

Wearn won’t be the only Aussie competing in a medal race on Wednesday, with fellow Western Australians Nia Jerwood and Conor Nicholas securing their place in the mixed dinghy decider by finishing their qualifying series in ninth.

 “Mixed emotions about today,” said Jerwood after racing. 

“I think some of the mistakes are going to haunt me for a little bit, but we’ve still got another day tomorrow and we'll keep fighting.”

Other racing aso went ahead earlier on Tuesday, with women’s kite completing one race in before the wind dropped right out, with Breiana Whitehead posting a ninth to stay in medal series contention.

Young mixed multihull team Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown finishing their first Olympic qualification series in 13th, two spots outside medal race qualification.

License this article

What is AAPNews?

For the first time, Australian Associated Press is delivering news straight to the consumer.

No ads. No spin. News straight-up.

Not only do you get to enjoy high-quality news delivered straight to your desktop or device, you do so in the knowledge you are supporting media diversity in Australia.

AAP Is Australia’s only independent newswire service, free from political and commercial influence, producing fact-based public interest journalism across a range of topics including politics, courts, sport, finance and entertainment.

What is AAPNews?
The Morning Wire

Wake up to AAPNews’ morning news bulletin delivered straight to your inbox or mobile device, bringing you up to speed with all that has happened overnight at home and abroad, as well as setting you up what the day has in store.

AAPNews Morning Wire
AAPNews Breaking News
Breaking News

Be the first to know when major breaking news happens.


Notifications will be sent to your device whenever a big story breaks, ensuring you are never in the dark when the talking points happen.

Focused Content

Enjoy the best of AAP’s specialised Topics in Focus. AAP has reporters dedicated to bringing you hard news and feature content across a range of specialised topics including Environment, Agriculture, Future Economies, Arts and Refugee Issues.

AAPNews Focussed Content
Subscription Plans

Choose the plan that best fits your needs. AAPNews offers two basic subscriptions, all billed monthly.

Once you sign up, you will have seven days to test out the service before being billed.

AAPNews Full Access Plan
Full Access
AU$10
  • Enjoy all that AAPNews has to offer
  • Access to breaking news notifications and bulletins
  • Includes access to all AAPNews’ specialised topics
Join Now
AAPNews Student Access Plan
Student Access
AU$5
  • Gain access via a verified student email account
  • Enjoy all the benefits of the ‘Full Access’ plan at a reduced rate
  • Subscription renews each month
Join Now
AAPNews Annual Access Plan
Annual Access
AU$99
  • All the benefits of the 'Full Access' subscription at a discounted rate
  • Subscription automatically renews after 12 months
Join Now

AAPNews also offers enterprise deals for businesses so you can provide an AAPNews account for your team, organisation or customers. Click here to contact AAP to sign-up your business today.

SEVEN DAYS FREE
Download the app
Download AAPNews on the App StoreDownload AAPNews on the Google Play Store