Portuguese sailor Eduardo Marques was relieved today to have achieved win the sixth ILCA 7 regatta of the Paris2024 Olympic Games, rising to ninth place overall, with access to the 'medal race'.
“I really needed a very good race, at least one race within the top five. I took a little more risk at the start, I felt fast at the start, even though the wind didn't contribute much in the first daggerboard and also because I turned around at the end of the stern, but I felt fast, I knew it wasn't going to be a problem”, the Portuguese sailor told the Lusa agency, who, making his Olympic debut, saw the tactic pay off in the second race of the day, whose triumph saw him re-enter the top 10, climbing to ninth.
Eduardo Marques, 30 years old, was pleased with his re-entry into the fight for the 'medal race', but aware that he will now have to manage his races better.
“Yes, for me it was a great desire to be able to be present in the 'medal race', but for now, that's it, it's trying regatta after regatta to do my best. In this case, I already have a 35, which is not good, and I am already counting a 31, which is not ideal at all. The next four races should be consistent, between 30 and 20 points per day, I wouldn’t ask for much more than this”, said the Capable Planet sailor.
After 35th place in the first race of the third day, his worst ranking in Marseille, the Portuguese won the sixth race, ahead of Australian Matt Wearn and New Zealander Thomas Saunders.
Overall, Eduardo Marques re-entered the top 10, which gives access to the 'medal race', with 63 points, with Matt Wearn, Olympic champion in Tokyo2020, in the lead, with 18, followed by the British Michael Beckett (40) and the Cypriot Pavlos Kontides (42), second and third placed, respectively.
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