PEMBROKESHIRE star Micky Beckett has seen his Olympic medal hopes dashed, despite being on the brink of securing a bronze.
To claim third place behind the dominant Australian Matt Wearn, Beckett needed to finish four places ahead of Peru’s Stefano Peschiera in the double points medal race. This seemed certain as he was in second place at the third of four “mark” buoys, with his rival trailing far behind.
However, with just minutes remaining and Beckett on course for the podium, the judges abandoned the race due to shifting winds. When they resumed an hour later on a different course off Marseille harbour, Beckett’s fortunes took a turn for the worse as he was forced to perform three penalty 360-degree turns.
The first penalty came right at the start, with Beckett penalised for “rocking” – moving the boat too much from side to side to gain speed.
By the first mark, Beckett had climbed to sixth place, two spots ahead of the Peruvian in the race but one point behind in the overall standings. Yet another penalty on the downwind run to the second mark temporarily evened things out as Peschiera was also penalised.
A final penalty on the approach to the last mark caused Beckett to drop to the back of the fleet, ending up in sixth place overall, with no chance to recover as Peschiera secured the bronze.
The BBC’s commentary team described it as “heartbreaking to watch” as Beckett’s medal chances slipped away, leaving fans equally distraught.
One fan commented, “Micky Beckett (Dinghy) virtually had the silver in his hands … & they stopped the race. Restart – they gave him an immediate penalty. It’s f***ing outrageous.”
Another expressed frustration, saying, “I feel sorry for Micky Beckett, man… he had a great lead in the early race before the abandonment, and then he got stuffed. I don’t see the difference in wind from before until this race… So annoying.”
