I had the same thought. Always tend to people in danger first.

RRS 61.1(a) states "A boat intending to protest shall... conspicuously display a red flag at the first reasonable opportunity...". It is reasonable to perform emergency acts of seamanship (such as assisting a person in danger) before flying the flag.

Furthermore, RRS 61.1(c) states "if the incident results in damage or injury that is obvious to the boats involved... the requirements of this rule do not apply...". The damage was obvious, so the protest flag was not necessary.

I also noticed that Groupe Edmond waved a yankee flag (yellow and red striped), rather than a bravo flag (red). Yankee is used in match racing, and I presume that the sailing instructions changed the protest flag for this race.

Regards,
Eric