One Person Dinghy (Finn), Open

Racing on the Azzurro Course, Paul Elvstrøm of Denmark won his fourth consecutive gold medal in one-person dinghy, making him the first Olympian to win the same event at four straight Olympics, although some purists demur because the 1948 event was held in the Firefly class. Elvstrøm’s feat has only been equalled by Al Oerter in athletics in the discus throw (1956-68) and Carl Lewis in athletics in the long jump (1984-96). In Roma Elvstrøm had three firsts and a second in the first six races, and sat out the last race, not needing a score to win his gold medal. Bronze medalist André Nelis of Belgium had been the silver medalist in 1956.