49er Pair Dickson and Waddilove Retire From French Olympic Sailing Week to Recover from Viral Infection

27th April 2023

Ireland's 49er crew of Seáfra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan of Royal Cork Yacht Club competing at French Olympic Sailing Week in Hyeres

Ireland's 49er crew of Seáfra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan (left) of Royal Cork Yacht Club competing at French Olympic Sailing Week in Hyeres Credit: Sailing Energy

Ireland's 49er skiff crew of Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove, from Howth and Skerries, respectively, have withdrawn from French Olympic Sailing Week after failing to make the Gold fleet on Wednesday.

The duo, who represented Ireland at Tokyo 2020, will concentrate on Dickson's recovery due to a viral infection from which he had earlier been declared 'cleared to sail'.

Ireland's second 49er crew of Seáfra Guilfoyle and Johnny Durcan of Royal Cork Yacht Club ended a light airs day four in Hyeres, counting a double and a seventh.

None of the fleets saw quite such a change at the top of the leaderboard as the men’s 49er, as the top two boats fell down the ladder as Spain’s Diego Bottin & Florian Trittel enjoyed a golden finish to the start of gold fleet, winning the last two of the day’s four races. The Dutch world champions Bart Lambriex & Floris van der Werken are all that is left of Wednesday’s podium after they finished 8, 5, 2, 5.

Meanwhile New Zealand’s Logan Dunning Beck & Oscar Gunn, winners in Palma at the beginning of April, and leaders overnight, had a day to forget, finishing 10, 19, 12, 17 in the 24-boat gold fleet and slipped to 5th overall. Likewise, USA’s Ian Barrows & Hans Henken slipped from second to seventh with 16, 4, 19, and 22 finishes.

More races are scheduled for Friday.

Results are here

Published in Robert Dickson & Sean Waddilove, Paris 2024 Olympic Sailing

Published in Robert Dickson & Sean Waddilove

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Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove

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Robert Dickson & Sean Waddilove, Tokyo Olympic 49er Sailors

Dublin dinghy sailors Robert Dickson of Howth Yacht Club and Sean Waddilove of Skerries Sailing Club achieved their goal of representing Ireland in the 49er class, almost six years to the day after first setting foot in a 49er skiff at their home club of Howth Yacht Club in County Dublin in 2015.

The voyage was a magnificent one becoming U23 World champions in 2018 before out sailing rivals double Olympian Ryan Seaton and Seafra Guilfoyle in some style for selection in Lanzarote in March 2021 to win the last European Olympic place for Tokyo.

Follow their progress here.