By Tom Harle in Paris

Solva sailor Micky Beckett was left to rue the brutal nature of his sport after a disappointing finish at the Olympics.

The 29-year-old could still have won a medal right up until the crucial double-points medal race in the ILCA 7 men’s dinghy class.

But after taking a hyper-aggressive approach, needing to finish two boats ahead of Peruvian Stefano Peschiera, Beckett sank to tenth in the medal race and placed sixth overall.

"It was incredibly light, incredibly hot,” said Beckett.

“The race chewed me up, spat me out and I went from fourth with a really good chance of bronze to sixth, which is just a bit crushing for me.

“In time I'll get over it. Right now I'm just very grateful to have family and friends here and the British Sailing Team, and everyone who's played the National Lottery at home as well, directly getting us here and giving us this opportunity. 

“Sorry I'm not coming home with a medal but I'm just very grateful. It'll sink in in time but right now it's pretty tough.”

Beckett left himself with too much to do, finishing 19th and 15th in two of the first three races.

But a strong middle stage of the event included two fourth-placed finishes and saw her climb to the brink of a podium finish.

He finished seven points short of Peschiera on a total of 87 with Norwegian Hermann Tomasgaard and Jonatan Vadnai of Hungary finishing ahead of the Welshman.

The gold medal went to Matthew Wearn of Australia, who retained his title from Tokyo.

Beckett took silver at last year’s World Championships and Test Event and was widely hailed by his rivals, a mark of the man.

Peschiera said: “(Beckett) is such a great sportsman. He also deserved a medal.

“There are only three of them, but there are definitely more than three guys that deserved one this week and he’s definitely one of them.

“I actually look up to him a lot because he’s done a lot in our sport and he’s definitely an example for us. I told him his time will come.”

Matt Wearn on Beckett: “Micky Beckett first and foremost, I know he didn’t come home with a medal this week but he’s someone that will continue delivering in the next four years. He’ll have the bit between his teeth and if he doesn’t win World Championships, he’ll definitely win a medal next time around.”

Follow the British Sailing Team at Paris 2024 on Instagram at @britishsailing and on www.britishsailingteam.com