President Nikos Christodoulides on Saturday congratulated Pavlos Kontides after he claimed the silver medal at the World Sailing Championships in Qingdao.

The medal came after Kontides chose to withdraw from the first race, due to a self-acknowledged mistake that could lead to confusion and possibly further penalty points.

Despite that he finished second behind the Dutch winner Willem Wiersema and ahead of Zac Littlewood from Australia.

Kontides had “once again lifted Cyprus to the highest podiums”, Christodoulides said, adding the athlete’s success was “enormous for him and for our country.”

The silver marks Kontides’ fifth medal in a World Championship. He has previously won gold in 2017 (Split) and 2018 (Aarhus), and silver in 2013 (Oman) and 2022 (Mexico).