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Windsurfing exits Olympics

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Windsurfing exits Olympics

3News NZ

Spain's Marina Alabau celebrates after crossing the finish line to win the women's RS-X sailing class during the medal race (Reuters/Benoit Tessier)

Spain's Marina Alabau celebrates after crossing the finish line to win the women's RS-X sailing class during the medal race (Reuters/Benoit Tessier)

Windsurfing made a spirited games exit, with Dorian Van Rijsselberge of the Netherlands collecting the men's gold medal he'd clinched days earlier and Marina Alabau of Spain winning the women's regatta.

Windsurfing got the heave-ho from the lineup for the 2016 Rio Olympics in a vote in May, replaced by kiteboarding. The International RS:X Class Association filed a legal challenge last week against the International Sailing Federation.

Van Rijsselberge and Alabau will probably have to focus on kiteboarding if they want to stay in the Olympics.

"Yeah, I think this was a mistake," Alabau said about windsurfing getting blown out of the games. "I think it will come back. This is my hope and this is what I think will be the right thing. I know how to kite and I will kite if they don't give me another chance, but I love windsurfing."

AP

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Total
United States of America462929104
People's Republic of China38272388
Great Britain29171965
Russian Federation24263282
South Korea138728
New Zealand62513
All the medals