Giles Scott says he will ‘regroup’ for the upcoming Olympic Games after a “disappointing” ninth-place finish at the Finn world championships.
Scott, the reigning Olympic champion, headed into the Finn Gold Cup eyeing his fifth world title, fresh from winning silver at the European Championships last month. But it was not to be, as he fell victim to tricky conditions in Porto, Portugal, that resulted in racing on only three of the five regatta days.
The win went to New Zealand’s Andy Maloney, winner of the 36th America’s Cup with Team New Zealand, with Joan Cardona of Spain taking silver and fellow Kiwi and ETNZ team member Josh Junior winning bronze.
The Gold Cup was the last major regatta before the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The next test for the world’s best Finn sailors will be on the waters of Enoshima in just over two months.
Scott’s right-hand man, training partner Henry Wetherell, ended his Finn career with a 13th-place finish, adding to the seventh he scored at the Europeans in April. With the Finn being removed from the Olympic slate after Tokyo 2020, the 2021 Gold Cup was Wetherell’s last outing in the heavyweight singlehander that made its Olympic debut at Helsinki 1952.
“That was one of the trickiest regattas I have done for a while,” he said. “Only three days of racing out of five, but I am glad I managed to have a consistent last day to jump a few spots to 13th. That was my last Finn regatta, and I. am glad to come away with some solid Europeans and worlds results… now it is a big push to finish the training with Giles before the Olympics.”
Full results of the regatta can be found here.
