Picon confirms golden comeback year in Hyères

France’s Charline Picon, the Rio 2016 Olympic Champion, made sure it was a golden finish for the hosts, winning the Women’s RS:X windsurfing to close the 51st edition of the Semaine Olympique Française.

There could not have been a better concluding day as the Medal Races played out in perfect Côte d’Azur conditions with a golden sun, clear skies and 15-knot westerlies.

Leading by 14 points overnight, Picon finished the Medal Race in third and confirmed her expected victory. She spoke after of how pleased she was to win her first regatta after having a baby a year and a half ago. She outperformed a powerful and motivated China team and as in the Rio Olympics beat Peina Chen into second.

“A victory without pressure, that’s not bad for me,” Picon said, “and especially as, this morning, I said to myself that it’s been a year since I made my comeback to competition here in Hyères. And here we are a year later, the first victory. It has been a lot of hard work for 12 months and there’s still some more to come.”

Italy’s Mattia Camboni and Australia’s Matthew Wearn had already won the Men’s RS:X and Laser respectively on Friday. But there was a shock in the first medal race of the day as Hungary’s rising star Maria Erdi, leading the Laser Radial by nine points overnight, finished last in the Medal Race having been outmanoeuvred by Finland’s Tuula Tenkanen, who took gold.

The 197 sailors from 49 nations have been tested to their limits in all different conditions over an a long racing schedule (12 for the Lasers and 16 for the RS:X, only the RS:X women lost one race because the Mistral was blowing too hard on Friday evening).

The best in the world keep coming back to these waters because the level of competition is always high. With a solid week of racing even more paramount in Olympic year, the 52nd edition to April 25 – May 2 2020 will doubtless be even harder fought.

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