QINGDAO // The defending finn champion Ben Ainslie could only trail home in 10th place in the opening race of the Olympic regatta today. The Briton, bidding for a third Olympic gold after his success in Sydney followed by finn gold four years ago in Athens, led the 26-strong fleet heading into the last downwind leg but floundered when the wind dropped. Ainslie, 31, unbeaten in regattas in the heavyweight finn dinghy since the Athens Games, limped in 61 seconds behind Greece's Emilios Papathanasiou. The American Zach Railey was second and Poland's Rafal Szukiel took third.
Racing had started 25 minutes later than scheduled due to insufficient wind. A further finn race is due to take place on Saturday and the Yngling class also got underway. *Reuters
