Paris2024: McKiwis win Silver in a Medal Race that was all but over just after it started
by Eduan Roos/Yachting NZ 3 Aug 13:07 NZST
28 July - 9 August 2024
McKiwis show off their 49er Silver Medal - Paris2024 Olympic Sailing Event - Marseille - August 2, 2024 © World Sailing / Lloyd Images
A dream that began with an exchange of messages between two young Auckland sailors seven years ago came true on the waters off the Marseille coast on Friday when Isaac McHardie and Will McKenzie won an Olympic medal for New Zealand.
The pair crossed the finish line in the men's skiff (49er) medal race in third place to claim silver behind Spain's Diego Botin and Florian Trittel.
The "McKiwis", as they have been dubbed, started the double-points race in the bronze medal position with any one of seven teams in the hunt for gold. They had two attempts at the medal race abandoned yesterday due to light breeze - once while in the gold-medal position.
Though it wasn't the top prize the Kiwis had aimed for at the start of the day, they were understandably delighted.
"It feels amazing. We always knew we could achieve it, but there were so many good teams out there. To win a medal for New Zealand is a dream come true. We've both been dreaming of this since we were little kids. We're still trying to process it, but we're just so stoked," McHardie said.
They got off to a good start in a nervy finale, trailing the Spanish for most of it before surrendering a spot to the Dutch later at Mark 3.
"To start with, I was pretty calm, but at the last top mark, that's where I started to think, 'let's just get this boat through the finish line without any drama,'" McHardie said.
"We didn't want to get too far ahead of ourselves. We were just trying to sail a clean, well-executed race. The Spanish got away, but we knew there was plenty of work to be done, so we just kept chipping away. By the second top mark, we probably could have stayed ahead of the Dutch, but we knew the numbers and we just wanted to keep out of trouble and secure the silver," McKenzie added.
The pair celebrated by jumping off their boat and celebrating in the water with the gold medallists.
Soon after, they were greeted by the rest of the New Zealand sailing team on the beach - something they agreed "will stick in the memory for a long, long time".
"Will and I started sailing together about seven years ago when we had both just split from our crews at the time. We exchanged a few messages and then decided to give it a crack. The rest is history," McHardie said.
"We've been working on this for seven years, and to now bring home a silver medal for our country is incredible. We've both wanted this for a long time."
Their success means New Zealand has now won a medal in the men's skiff event for the last four Olympics, with Peter Burling and Blair Tuke winning silver in London in 2012, gold in Rio de Janeiro four years later, and silver again in Tokyo.
They've been a big influence on the careers of McHardie and McKenzie, with Tuke one of the first to congratulate them with a phone call from Barcelona, where he and Burling are preparing to defend the 37th America's Cup next month.
"Pete and Blair have been incredible role models for us, and they have been happy to share information and advice whenever we've needed it," McHardie said. "They've been the benchmark for 49er sailing for the past decade, and to be able to build on their legacy is an honour. To have them in our corner is incredibly special. They've been a big part of our process."
McKenzie said the entire team appreciated the support of Kiwis in Marseille and back home.
"Isaac and I can take the glory, but there are so many people behind us who have played a big part in our success - especially our coach Matt Steven, who's done huge things.
"To everyone back home, thank you. We couldn't have done this without you."
In other results on Friday, Jo Aleh and Molly Meech finished seventh overall in the women's skiff (49erFX) following a superb fourth place in a dramatic medal race.
Tom Saunders moved up to fifth in the men's dinghy (ILCA 7) fleet after a second consecutive day of consistent scoring, while 21-year-old Greta Pilkington is 36th in the women's dinghy (ILCA 6) competition with seven races remaining.
The Men's and Women's Windsurfing medal series were both postponed to tomorrow due to light winds.
Veerle ten Have will compete in the Quarterfinal of the knockout event and needs back-to-back top-two placings to advance to the final, a result Josh Armit needs to achieve only once (in his Semifinal) to be assured of a medal.
Saturday's schedule:
- From 12pm (10 pm NZT): Women's dinghy - Greta Pilkington (3 Races)
- 12.10 pm (10.10 pm NZT): Women's windsurfing - Veerle ten Have (Medal series)
- From 12.15 pm (10.15 pm NZT): Men's dinghy - Tom Saunders (2 Races)
- 12.30 pm (10.30 pm NZT): Men's windsurfing - Josh Armit (Medal series)
- 1 pm (11 pm NZT): Mixed multihull - Micah Wilkinson and Erica Dawson (3 races)
Latest results and standings on Day 6 of the Olympic sailing competition in Marseille:
Men's skiff fleet (20 boats)
1. Diego Botin/Florian Trittel (Esp) (16) 6 4 5 11 2 3 2 2 15 12 6 2 - 70 pts
2. Isaac McHardie/Will McKenzie (NZ) 1 3 8 8 1 1 11 (18) 17 1 10 15 6 - 82 pts
3. Ian Barrows/Hans Henken (USA) 8 7 (17) 9 9 5 10 7 3 2 8 12 8 - 88 pts
Women's skiff fleet (20 boats)
1. Odile van Aanholt/Annette Duetz (Ned) 5 1 1 10 8 5 (19) 3 2 15 4 14 6 - 74 pts
2. Vilma Bobeck/Rebecca Netzler (Swe) 14 6 15 4 15 10 2 1 5 1 1 (17) 2 - 76 pts
3. Sarah Steyaert/Charline Picon (Fra) 2 2 2 8 2 2 12 11 10 (18) 6 10 12 - 79 pts
7. Jo Aleh/Molly Meech (NZ) 15 17 20 9 17 8 3 2 1 14 8 7 8 - 109 pts
Men's windsurfing fleet (24 boards)
1. Grae Morris (Aus) (13) (25DNS) 10 9 1 7 2 1 9 2 4 7 8 - 60 pts
2. Tom Reuveny (Isr) 8 13 5 3 3 4 (25BFD) 3 5 13 (15) 4 2 - 63 pts
3. Josh Armit (NZ) 4 (18) 1 14 8 (25UFD) 11 2 6 4 2 3 11 - 66 pts
Women's windsurfing fleet (24 boards)
1. Emma Wilson (GBR) 1 2 1 2 (17) 1 1 1 1 (3) 1 1 3 3 - 18 pts
2. Sharon Kantor (Isr) (25DSQ) 6 10 1 1 3 4 2 (15) 1 2 6 2 11 - 49 pts
3. Marta Maggetti (Ita) 5 3 4 (20) 11 4 3 8 4 4 4 (15) 11 9 - 70 pts
9. Veerle ten Have (NZ) (25DSQ) 15 16 8 (18) 5 12 11 3 5 3 2 16 13 - 109 pts
Men's dinghy (43 boats)
1. Matt Wearn (Aus) 12 2 1 (18) - 15 pts
2. Filip Jurisic (Cro) 13 4 (32) 1 - 18 pts
3. Stefano Peschiera (Per) 6 1 (14) 11 - 18 pts
5. Tom Saunders (NZ) 11 (17) 10 7 - 28 pts
Women's dinghy (43 boats)
1. Marit Bouwmeester (Ned) (4) 1 2 - 3 pts
2. Louise Cervera (Fra) 1 (24) 4 - 5 pts
3. Monika Mikkola (Fin) (18) 2 5 - 7 PTS
36. Greta Pilkington (NZ) 21 34 (41) - 55 pts