Sailing

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British duo John Gimson and Anna Burnet's hopes of claiming a medal in the mixed multihull event came to a crushing end when they were disqualified in the final race.

Gimson and Burnet - Olympic silver medallists in Tokyo - were third heading into the double-points medal race.

However, they were judged to have crossed the line before the starting horn sounded and forced to retire while their competitors continued.

The couple, who are planning to get married after the Games, received the maximum 22 points which saw them move down to fourth in the overall standings.

"We made one mistake and it's cost us an Olympic medal so you can imagine we're pretty broken," Gimson said.

Burnet added: "In that moment it's devastating, it's a bad dream but we can be proud of what we have done.

"There's no-one I'd rather be here with. We're so lucky we get to do this together. The highs and lows, we're biding it together."

Italy's Ruggero Tita and Caterina Banti, who led going into the medal race, crossed the finish line in second to retain their Olympic title.

Mateo Majdalani and Eugenia Bosco of Argentina took silver, while New Zealand's Micah Wilkinson and Erica Dawson won bronze.

Earlier on Thursday, Austria's Vadlau and Lukas Maehr were crowned Olympic champions in the mixed dinghy event.

Japan's Keiju Okada and Miho Yoshioka stayed near the front of the pack throughout in the double-points finale to secure silver, while Anton Dahlberg and Lovisa Karlsson of Sweden picked up bronze.

Marit Bouwmeester, of the Netherlands, became the most successful Olympic sailor in history by winning the women's dinghy race in Marseille.

Bouwmeester, 36, surpassed Great Britain's Hannah Mills' previous record by adding a second gold to her one silver and one bronze.

The Dutchwoman had already effectively secured the title by taking an unassailable lead in qualifying on Monday and just had to complete the race to win.

The final was originally scheduled for Tuesday but had to be rearranged because of low winds, with the start time on Wednesday also pushed back.

Anne-Marie Rindom, of Denmark, and Norwegian Flem Line Hoest took silver and bronze respectively.

Italy's Chiara Benini Floriani won the final race, but it was not enough for a podium place as she finished in fifth overall.

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Great Britain's John Gimson and Anna Burnet qualified for Wednesday's Olympic medal race in the mixed multihull after closing the regular race programme in third position.

The pair recorded finishes of fifth, first and third in Tuesday's races in Marseille and stand a good chance of securing a medal.

Vita Heathcote and Chris Grube missed out the medal race in the mixed dinghy in heartbreaking fashion. Having finished 15th and seventh in the opening two races of the day, the final two were cancelled because of the conditions.

The event now progresses to a 10-boat medal race on Wednesday, with the 2022 world silver medallists sitting outside the qualifying positions in 11th. With 65 points, they scored just one point more than Brazil's boat, who qualified in 10th place with 64.

Meanwhile, Team GB's Micky Beckett will have to endure another nervous night before he can get a shot at a medal, with the medal race in the men's dinghy postponed until Wednesday.

The women's medal race was also put back a day, but GB interest has ended in that event.

The men's kite staged two of the five scheduled races, with GB's Connor Bainbridge finishing 12th and 11th, his worst two race results thus far. He is eighth in the standings.

Team-mate Eleanor Aldridge did not start in the one women's kite race to take place, but is still second in the rankings.