Britain’s Ellie Aldridge wins the first gold in kitesurfing, billed as the fastest Olympic event

MARSEILLE, France (AP) — Ellie Aldridge of Britain won gold after two close finals races in women’s kitesurfing, the new, fastest sport at the Summer Olympics.

“I hope it brightens everybody’s spirits a bit after the week we had,” Aldridge said.

Fickle winds and high temperatures have wreaked havoc with the program and tested athletes’ endurance, confirming some champions but also creating surprise comebacks.

Going into these Paris Games, Britain held the most sailing medals in Olympic history but its only other medal in Marseille has been a bronze in windsurfing.

Lauriane Nolot of France won silver on Thursday, which the current world champion described as “a bit disappointing,” and Annelous Lammerts of the Netherlands took bronze.

“It’s a dream,” Lammerts said. “I was battling a six-time world champion, so I knew there was no room for error.”

Lammerts was referring to Daniela Moroz of the United States, a dominant figure in the sport who placed fourth in the final race. She entered the competition having won consecutive world championships from 2016-2022.

In kitesurfing, sailors ride a surfboard that is harnessed to a parachute-like sail above while being perched on a skinny hydrofoil below. They can go so fast at times, foiling at speeds of up to 80 kilometers (50 miles) per hour that eclipse even the sprints of track cyclists.

Kitesurfing has a more complicated and nail-biting scoring system than other sailing classes, with points accumulated during multiple days of regattas having a smaller influence on medal chances.

Eight sailors made it to finals for the women’s and men’s medals, four by their overall standings in races held on previous days and four through semifinals, flying at speeds exceeding 30 knots (35 mph or 56 kph).

In the men’s, Toni Vodisek of Slovenia and Max Maeder of Singapore were joined by Valentin Bontus of Austria and Riccardo Pianosi of Italy.

One race in the men’s finals was held, but the leader didn’t seal it with a win, which went to Bontus instead. Since no race can start later than 5:37 p.m., the competition was pushed back to Friday.

“The weather doesn’t play ball sometime,” Maeder explained.

The kitesurfing finals are the last of the sailing medal races scheduled in the 2024 Olympics in Marseille.

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AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games