Jubilant windsurfer Korzits wins race to close in on medal
‘Everything improved,’ says Israeli, now number two in the overall event standings; disappointing results for other Israeli contenders in sailing and surfing
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Israeli windsurfer Lee Korzits finished first in race eight of the women’s RS-X competition on Saturday afternoon at the Olympic Games, and was in second place overall at the end of the day with strong prospects of a medal.
Korzits is now only three points behind the event’s leader, Spain’s Marina Alabau, going into races 9 and 10 on Sunday, with the final “medal race” on Tuesday. “If I have a good day [on Sunday], I can guarantee a medal place, but I have to stay focused,” Korzits said. “I’m very pleased with how today went. My starts were good, and everything improved.”
The competition is taking place off the coast of Weymouth and Portland in southern England.
Earlier on Saturday, Korzits finished second in the seventh race of the event, which lifted her from third into second position in the overall standings.
The competition is made up of 10 races, with sailors accumulating points based on their finishes in each race: first place scores one point, second scores two points, etc. After 10 races, points from the worst race are discarded, and points from the remaining races are added up.
The 10 best sailors (those with lowest point totals) then move on to the medal race, where point values for each placement are doubled. The grand totals, including the 10 prior races and the medal race, determine the winner.
Also on Saturday, Laser Radial sailor Nofar Edelman finished in 30th place after completing her last two races in 18th and 26th place. Gideon Kliger and Eran Sela finished second in the fifth 470 sail, reaching 12th place in the overall standings. Surfer Shahar Tzuberi finished his eighth race in 34th place, falling to 20th place in the overall standings.
In other Olympic news on Saturday, runner Donald Sanford had his shoes stolen before his qualifying heat in the men’s 400m dash. He finished fifth and failed to qualify for the semifinals.
Jillian Schwartz failed to advance past the qualifying round of the women’s pole vault competition, after a third failed attempt at 4.5m.
The Times of Israel Community.