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2024 PARIS OLYMPIC GAMES: SO NEAR, SO FAR – A PAINFUL ENDING

Candid reflections by Emma Wilson & Sam Sills after two heroic efforts at the Paris Olympic Games, who did themselves and Team GB proud, but narrowly missed out on their dreams.

Words: Emma Wilson and Sam Sills // Words: World Sailing / Lloyd Images / Sander van der Borch / Jean-Louis Carli

EMMA WILSON

CONSECUTIVE OLYMPIC MEDALS

It’s pretty cool, I guess, to get two Olympic medals in two different classes is not too bad. I think once it sinks in, I will be proud of what I have achieved.

OVERALL RACING

I really enjoyed the racing the whole week, it was really tricky conditions but i just kept giving my best and believing in all the training I had done.

NERVES

I always get nervous, but i think if i didn’t, something would be wrong. I guess I knew deep down that I had done everything I possibly could in training, so in a way that calmed me down and I just tried to enjoy the whole experience.

COURSE DISADVANTAGE

It’s not easy, but I am also used to it and knew that that was the game we were playing. I just tried to do everything I could to prepare for that race as well as I could.

MEDAL RACE TACTICS

When Marta [Maggetti] tacked, I thought she had gone way too early and then I was a bit pinned by Sharon [Kantor]. In the end the wind had gone very far left so Marta made it and me and Sharon were miles over the layline. Marta sailed a great second beat and that’s what gave her the gold medal.

HEARTBREAK

I’m never going to forget the medal race, that’s for sure! It’s still hard, I wake up every night thinking about that layline. I made a big mistake, and it cost me my dream. I guess all I can say to myself is I made very few mistakes all week and can be proud of the series I put together. Any Olympic medal is not bad. I hope World Sailing will think about the Medal Race format, but whatever happens, I can be proud of the Olympic campaign myself and Sam Ross put together to bring home another medal for GB.

ANOTHER OLYMPIC CAMPAIGN?

I think so, I just need some time to reflect and recover. My dream of being Olympic Champion isn’t going anywhere and I still believe I have a lot more to give to the sport.

OTHER OPTIONS

I’d love to give the Foil Slalom a go, I think it would be fun, maybe some of the wing foil racing too!

HOME REACTION

Everyone has been very supportive and proud, it’s amazing and I’m so grateful.

THE OLYMPIC JOURNEY

I loved the journey, from my skinny R:SX self to try and get strong enough for the iQFOiL in three years wasn’t easy and wouldn’t have been possible without the support from British Sailing! I have to thank my family, Sam Ross and there are so many other people to thank, I can’t mention them all, but the medal is for everyone. It literally takes an army just to get to the Olympic Games.

SAM SILLS

NOTHING LEFT TO GIVE

I gave it everything I could. It was a huge amount of work to bring the best possible performance I could. I made it through the quarterfinals in the Medal Race and went into the semifinals. I couldn’t have done anything more. In that moment that was my best and that was important to me. I was able to access my flow state, have my equipment fully prepared and did the best possible preparation I could for that one moment and bring it all together. I couldn’t have asked for more. I was gutted to not win a medal as I was so close and felt it was really happening and it was painful not to reach the final. At the same time, it was such a rare opportunity to get to that point and I was thrilled to have made it so far.

I did not enjoy the whole experience. I absolutely loved the racing. This was the highlight of my career. I loved how challenging it was. I loved how different it was. The pressure really made some riders crumble, and I really enjoyed the mental challenge of keeping it together. I managed to find solutions to new problems. I loved every minute of that aspect, and it was everything I expected over those four years. We knew Marseille was going to be tough! We knew the race crew were going to be challenged to get the course set as the wind is so sketchy around those mountains. We knew the wind might be really light and difficult. We were totally ready for that also. The fact I was prepared for all of this brought me a lot of joy.

THE BUILD UP

The build up was absolute hell. Everything was looking pretty amazing, three weeks out. I was in a really good place. I remember telling one of my friends it was unusual how well things were going before a big event. Then I ended up almost breaking my foot and ended up in hospital which was not great. Luckily it was fine, and I just took a few days to recover.  During the following couple of days, the vertical foil mast I was planning to use during the games snapped. That was a big deal because I don’t have many of those that are decent. We were just given four and they were all pretty different. That was a bit of a panic as I had to get all my angles retuned. Everything was looking good and then two days before the field of play closed, somebody kindly laid a fishing net out in the bay across the entrance of the marina. I hit it full speed at 30 knots, and I broke everything, fuselage, front wing, boom sail and parts of me! That was a real horrible moment. I was then in deep, deep stress that I knew I was now onto my C equipment, which was okay, but not as good as what I had been using. I did not know all the settings that well and we didn’t have any time to change anything. That was not fun. I hated that moment. There was nothing I could do. In the final week we were given our boards and there was not much wind. I did not get much opportunity to tune the spare, spare gear. The board I got given the fin box was 1mm too wide, so I had to fight with the committee to get it changed which took quite a bit of energy. I lost really important days sorting this out in the crucial moments leading up to the event. I went into the games in as good a place as I could be, but knowing some of the really important things could have been better. It was very stressful and difficult to deal with. I am proud of myself how I managed to fight through it. I kept fighting until the very end.

I found the week after the event pretty difficult. It was all a bit too much for me after such an intense Games. I was so exhausted I found it difficult to enjoy. I loved the racing and the closing ceremony, but that build up was a bit of a nightmare.

RISKING IT ALL

The standard was the highest it has ever been I would say. The level of risk people were willing to take to get into that top ten was Insane. I remember on the last day people were going from fifth to fifteenth by going for a gap that didn’t exist. It was just chaos and difficult to manage. The atmosphere between the racers was not too bad. Everyone was composed, and a bit stressed, because this was the Olympic Games with everything on the line. Nobody is really used to helicopters flying around, the media and the huge crowds. That was all completely new. I loved the atmosphere. We did a lot of slalom and it seemed like the pin was a good place to start. That was what most of the riders were going for. But then maybe three people would get out at the pin and another ten would get swallowed by the fleet. It was really hard to balance the level of risk to make those decisions.

STRESS

I just tried to keep things simple, take everything moment by moment, and enjoy the racing as much as I possibly could. I love pressure and that all or nothing feeling. This was everything I had worked for. I hope that this is what brings out the best in me. I didn’t find the racing stressful, I just found it enjoyable and challenging. The week before the racing was more stressful and I did not cope so well with that. I just tried to solve all the problems as best I could.

HIGHLIGHT

My highlight had to be the quarterfinals. I spent over a hundred days in Marseille, living there and sailing pretty much every single day. I just had one or two rest days off a week. When I got into that quarterfinal I knew where the opportunities were. It was amazing to have had that preparation. I was ready for anything and I was able to execute it in the moment under all that pressure. I didn’t have an amazing start and I only got into a qualifying position right at the last moment. Being in that flow state was the highlight of my career. I will remember that forever. My family, friends and sponsors from Holiday Extras were all there on the wall cheering. That was just an incredible moment that I will remember forever.

EMMA WILSON

Everyone was checking how Emma was as she was so distressed after the final and everyone was feeling for her. It was sad to see, but she still did amazing to come away with the bronze. Any medal at the Olympic Games is a great achievement. It was devastating for her, so I really felt for her at that moment.

THANKS

I really want to thank Holiday Extras for supporting me as they helped me with everything this year. They really went above and beyond to help me bring home a medal. We were so close and it was so special to be able to do that with them there in Marseille. I could really feel the positive energy and their support. A huge thanks to my friends and family. Some of my friends drove down from Cornwall and brought a Cornish flag for the finals and were waving from the marina. That was so special to see. I just want to thank all of my family and friends. My girlfriend came over from Majorca too. They were all there for me. There have been so many people that have helped me over the last four years. You all know who you are! My uncle helped with all the logistics and helped drive my van across Europe. He has been a legend. My parents were always there for me when I needed anything or was struggling. The British Sailing Team were amazing for having that epic support structure and allowing us to be able to prepare so well. I was able to put everything into my Olympic campaign – leaving no stone unturned. A massive thank you to Guy Cribb as well for being there for me these last years. He always brings amazing energy!

SAM ROSS – EMMA WILSON’S COACH

In a brutal format, where things are weighed against someone winning a medal, they are stacked against those things that mean you should win a gold medal. We always wanted to get that guarantee going into the last day, however, we knew what was possible. The way Emdog went about that was absolutely incredible and a joy to witness. It was great to watch someone doing what they love at the top of the game.

Once Emdog had crossed that line in the final, it will always be one of the greatest privileges in my career, being there for her as soon as I could.

I can’t remember what we spoke about, but I know when we went out there we were, authentically, ourselves and had done everything we could just to get the chance to be in that position. The pride I have for the entirety of Emdog’s performanc,e not just during, but pre the Olympics will never fade. It is also an incredible fact that she will probably be the only ever person to win two Olympic windsurfing medals within 3 years of each other.

If I had to sum up Emdog , there is a huge amount of pride for what we had achieved, but huge disappointment in the way we had to compete for the top prize. However, despite all of that, as soon as she saw Marta, she gave her a smile and a hug and a huge congratulations.

We often talk about whether our sport is growing, stalling, or the other things out there, and then you see someone like this who isn’t just an incredible athlete, but their passion for the sport is unrivalled. You then see the interactions she has, pre and post Games, with aspiring young windsurfers, and I think as long as people like Emma are in the sport of windsurfing it’ll  probably be ok.