Photo: Getty Images
Zach Railey of the United States of America is seen competing in the Finn class race held at the Qingdao Olympic Sailing Center during day 1 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 9, 2008 in Qingdao, China.
QINGDAO, China (AP) Greek sailor Emilios Papathanasiou and Zach Railey of the United States won the opening Olympic Finn race in light winds Saturday, leaving defending champion Ben Ainslie of Britain in 11th place.
The first Beijing Olympic sailing race was part of a series of 11 that will determine the medals. In the three-crew Yngling class for women, Australia edged Britain and Russia in the opener, which finished shortly after the men in the Finn class dinghies.
Another race in each class was scheduled later Saturday.
The light winds, sometimes against a strong current, often made the fleets seem all but becalmed at times. Papathanasiou finished the first race in 1 hour, 11 minutes, and 2 seconds, more than twice the roughly 30-minute target time set by organizers because winds dropped even more.
Railey climbed 14 places on the final of four legs in the Finn to clinch second, while Ainslie, who has two Olympic sailing golds and one silver, dropped from first to No. 11 of 26 boats.
Ainslie hasn't lost a Finn class race since 2004, although for the past year his time has been devoted mainly to helming Britain's Team Origin entry in the America's Cup.
Papathanasiou climbed from sixth to first in the last leg. Poland's Rafal Szukiel was third in the Finn opener, climbing from 14th place.
Currents on the two sides of the course appeared to have varied greatly in strength, possible giving boosting speed for boats that picked the correct side and a stinging loss of speed to those that didn't.
Ahead of the opening race, Railey said staying calm in the difficult conditions off Qingdao, the sailing venue about 500 kilometers (300 miles) south of Beijing, would be critical.
"This is a very hard place to sail and consistency is going to be the key to a good results," Railey said. "The racing is going to be very exciting to watch."
In the Yngling class opener, the Australian team of Krystal Weir, Karyn Gojnich, and Angela Farrell finished ahead of British favorites Sarah Ayton, Sarah Webb and Pippa Wilson.
The Russian team of Ekaterina Skudina, Diana Krutskikh and Natalia Ivanova were third of 15 boats.
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