KEY POINTS:
QINGDAO - New Zealand boardsailor Tom Ashley extended his Olympic lead as he maintained his remarkable consistency at the Qingdao yachting regatta today.
Ashley finished sixth in the first race of the day in strong 20-knot winds to stretch his lead to seven points over second-placed Briton Nick Dempsey, with two more races to sail today before Wednesday's medal race.
Reigning world champion Ashley was yet to finish further back than seventh at the regatta.
Star pair Hamish Pepper and Carl Williams bounced back from their 11th placing yesterday when they suffered a broken runner block which nearly broke their mast.
They won race five to leave them third in the tightly-bunched 16-boat fleet, just two points off joint leaders Germany and Sweden.
Three-time Olympic medallist Barbara Kendall maintained her fifth placing in the women's boardsailing, finishing sixth in race eight to be two points off the bronze medal position.
Laser Radial sailor Jo Aleh found it tough going again in the strong wind, finishing 14th in race seven to slip to fourth, 11 points off the lead and eight points off the bronze medal spot.
In the Laser class, Andrew Murdoch recovered to finish fifth for a second consecutive race to move into the top-10, with two races to sail before tomorrow's medal race.
- NZPA
