Zhou Yuanguo Stripped Second Victory in SydneyChinese Mistral boardsailor Zhou Yuanguo has been stripped of his second victory in the Sydney Olympic regatta on Tuesday because he got help from his coach just before the start.Zhou, who came from sixth place to lead the fleet of 36 sailors over the closing three legs, won race four of the men's Mistral class in light conditions on Sydney Harbour. But New Zealand's Aaron McIntosh and Australia's Lars Kleppich protested that Zhou had spoken to his coach after the five-minute pre-race warning gun had sounded. The race committee upheld the complaints, saying Zhou had broken race rules prohibiting any contact between competitors and coaches within five minutes of race starts. "(Zhou) handed equipment to his coach after the preparatory signal, thereby receiving outside help," the international race jury said. The start had been delayed for more than three hours by light, shifting winds. Several competitors claimed they had seen Zhou hand a jacket to his coach just before the race, although only New Zealand and Australia complained officially. The unranked Zhou, 18th in the 36-man fleet before the disqualification, will fall well back in the recalculated standings. Competitors are allowed to discard their worst two results-- including disqualifications -- at the end of the 11-race series. Argentine boardsailor Carlos Espinola, silver medallist in the Mistral class in Atlanta four years ago, was promoted from second to first on Tuesday after Zhou's disqualification and leads overall from Austria's Christoph Sieber. The 22-year-old Zhou finished first in the opening race of the regatta on Sunday but was disqualified for crossing the start line early. |
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