2023-05-19 19:34:00
Four IMOCAs will compete this Saturday in the Newport In-Port Race before crossing the Atlantic and The Ocean Race leaves America and returns to Europe.
With just over a month to go in the Grand Final in Genoa (Italy), there is still much equality at the top of the standings, with three teams separated by a single point before the start of the fifth stage, which will take place on Sunday.
Kevin Escoffier’s Team Holcim-PRB has a slim lead over the 11th Hour Racing Team and Team Malizia. His team bounces back from dismasting on stage four and has used all of his energy and resources to get to the start line at Newport, with the lead still in his possession despite withdrawing from the previous stage.
“If we are still leading here in Newport it is thanks to the technical and logistical team, which has done a great job,” Escoffier acknowledged during a press conference this Friday at Sail Newport. «Being here is a small miracle. The boat is great, the (spare) mast has the same performance standard that we were looking for.”
Escoffier has changed crews again, incorporating Charles Caudrelier, who is the skipper with whom he sailed to victory in the last edition of the Volvo Ocean Race.
Charlie Enright, skipper of the 11th Hour Racing Team, trails by just one point and salvaged a challenging first half of his world tour with a victory in his hometown of Newport last week. This victory catapults the team back into the battle for the lead in the standings.
The fifth stage has a double value
“Obviously it was an incredible stage for us,” Enright acknowledged. “The ending itself was almost as if it were prewritten, like a fairy tale: we were greeted by hundreds of ships and thousands of people. It was amazing and personally, it was a dream come true.”
Enright also adds Charlie Dalin to his crew for the transatlantic leg. Dalin is a two-time IMOCA World Champion and will certainly add to the performance aboard the 11th Hour Racing Team. “His record speaks for itself as one of the most successful offshore sailors in recent years, if not the most,” highlights Enright.
Team Malizia is level on points with the 11th Hour Racing Team, also just one point behind leaders Team Holcim-PRB. Skipper Boris Herrmann returns after sitting out on stage 4, while Yann Eliès replaces Nico Lunven.
“Stage 5 is exciting. It’s an emblematic stage of offshore racing, and it’s going to be exciting until the very end… Currently, things couldn’t be better for our team and for the race in general«Hermann said. “Everything is at stake.”
“We are quite confident in our boat and in the team and we are trying to keep progressing step by step. We hope to progress further, learn more during this stage and make it as difficult as possible for the other four teams to be at the top of the standings.”
A small step behind the leading trio is Paul Meilhat’s Biotherm, who remains within reach of the overall lead.
“Yes, it is still possible to win”Meilhat insisted. “The boat is fast, we have a good crew and this race is not over yet. We’ve done maybe 80% of the race in terms of miles, but in terms of points we’re only halfway there. At the start in Alicante we said that we wanted to be in a position where we would have a chance in the last two stages. We are very close to it.”
The fifth stage scores double
The next leg of the race across the Atlantic from Newport to Aarhus (Denmark) scores double, giving it strategic importance. A win here will go a long way in determining the final results.
Before the start of the stage on Sunday, the In-Port regatta on Saturday will arrive. The classification in the In-Port Series serves as a tiebreaker in the general classification of the regatta. With so much equality, the In-Port Series take on great importance.
The weather forecast is not promising: 30+ knot winds and heavy rain. But if the conditions are safe at the time of the start (14:10 local time / 18:10 UTC), the race will take place.
The fifth IMOCA, the GUYOT environnement – Team Europe, is returning to Europe from Halifax (Canada). Skipper Benjamin Dutreux joined his colleagues in the field to update the information:
“I want to thank all the teams, everyone can understand what it is to manage a project like this and how important it is to have the support of your teammates and rivals”said. “We are doing our best to join the fleet in Europe”.
“At the moment we don’t know exactly what the plan will be, we are working on it. The boat is already on the boat and will go to Europe and we are working with the support of all the other teams and all the parties involved in the regatta. We don’t want to retire, we want to finish the story, that’s the most important thing for us.”.
#fight #Ocean #Race #lead #begins #Newport